I Trust You
by Ariel96
Summary: A one-shot collection focusing on kid!Skye with her family and friends. It coincides with my multi-chapter fic, 'You Can Trust Me,' and will be in that same universe. Cute and fluffy (occasionally angsty, but who doesn't love angst?)!
1. Five Times Skye Uses Her Cuteness

**Hey guys! This is where I'm going to put all my one-shots for kid!Skye. All of them will be in the same universe as my multi-chapter fic, 'You Can Trust Me'. I would encourage you to read that before reading these one-shots just so you know what's going on, but you don't have to. I hope you guys like it!**

 **Inspired by GothicPheonix's prompt: Five times (or more) Skye uses her cuteness to stop the fighting or gets her way. Like maybe if the brothers fight over the remote again, she goes between them with the puppy-eyed look, she asks if she could watch Frozen or some other non-Tangled animation movie on TV and it stops the fighting and they eventually cave (with background Nat and/or Wanda laughing at them for giving in so easily), another fight could be Fitzsimmons over usual science-y terms.**

 **Thanks for the prompt! xx**

* * *

Skye had a certain way of getting what she wanted. Natasha had started noticing that within the first few weeks that the little girl had come to stay with them. Her little sister knew what she had to do to get people to see her way. Natasha wouldn't say that she was _manipulative_ … she would say that Skye just used her cuteness to her advantage and there was nothing wrong with that. It was sneaky and underhanded but so freaking adorable that Natasha couldn't find it in her to be upset about it.

* * *

Natasha was in the living room on her laptop enjoying her winter break from school. She was lying on her stomach on the floor with Wanda right next to her. They were perusing the internet while the boys fought behind them on the couch. Trip and Pietro _always_ fought over the stupid remote. She didn't understand why they couldn't just share, apparently that was too difficult of a concept for those two dummies to understand, but it was amusing to watch.

They would play rock, paper, scissors to see who got to watch their own show. One of them would win and the other would accuse him of cheating. That would lead to an argument, and then a rematch, and then the cycle would continue on and on until her mom or dad got tired of it and told them to play nice and share. She and Wanda liked to guess which parent would snap first. It was usually her dad.

Trip and Pietro had been bickering over the remote for a solid fifteen minutes. Pietro wanted to watch some action movie and Trip was arguing against it because Shark Week was on. She didn't know what the big deal was. It felt like Shark Week was on every other week anyways.

She continued to stare at her computer screen while periodically giving Wanda knowing looks as they listened to their brothers bicker. She had bet that her mom would be the first to crack this time while Wanda had said that it would be her dad.

Their parents were in the kitchen with Skye. The little girl had seen an episode of Cupcake Wars and had become enamored with the idea of baking cupcakes, especially Frozen-themed cupcakes. Apparently, she had never done that before. They were frosting the delicious treats right now and Nat kept glancing over to them.

Skye looked very happy from where she sat on the counter, sprinkling blue and white sprinkles over the freshly frosted cupcakes. Her parents didn't seem to be acknowledging her brothers' squabble and while it might not be bothering them, it _was_ starting to grate on her nerves a little bit.

She let out a breath and turned back to her computer. She tried to ignore her brother's stupid fight for the next couple of minutes and just as she was about to turn around and yell at them, Skye came skipping into the room. She had a smudge of blue frosting on her cheek and some in her two pigtails. She had a smile on her face and her eyes were bright. Natasha liked seeing her so happy.

She sat up and watched as Skye wandered over to the couch, which was occupied by her annoying brothers. She looked at them, "What are you watching?"

Pietro shoved Trip, "I want to watch Bourne."

Trip pushed him back, "Bourne is lame, man. Besides, we've seen it like eight hundred times!"

Pietro threw his hands up in the air, "Yeah, because watching sharks swim around is _so_ much more interesting!"

Trip was about to reply when Skye spoke up, "We can watch Frozen!"

Both boys paused and looked at each other. They both had pained expressions on their faces and Nat knew why. They had all watched Frozen _way_ to many times in the past couple of weeks. She knew all the words to the songs in addition to most of the lines in the movie, which was something she never thought she would say. She didn't know how Skye could watch it over and over again without growing tired of it.

Trip rubbed the back of his neck, "Actually Skye, I don't think-"

Skye interrupted him, "Please! Please, please, please!" She grabbed onto his arm and tugged on it. Nat watched as she widened her eyes, stuck out her bottom lip and leaned in close to him. Her little sister had the ability to look like a sad, little puppy and she was using it to her full advantage.

Trip stared at Skye for a moment before sighing and turning to Pietro, "I mean, I guess Frozen isn't _too_ bad."

Pietro jerked his head over to look at Trip, "What? Skye, I don't think I can sit through that movie again. Have you ever seen Bourne? It's a classic and…"

He trailed off as Skye turned her puppy-eyes onto him. She climbed onto the couch and put her arms around his neck before she set her head on his shoulder and gave him a tight hug. Nat looked over to Wanda to see if she was watching this. She was. With a proud smirk on her face.

Nat turned back and heard Skye say, "Please Pietro? I love watching Frozen with you. You can do the same voice that Kristoff does when he pretends to talk for Sven! It's so cool. "

She heard him sigh before getting up to put the DVD in. Skye sat back against the couch with a smile on her face and Nat couldn't help but laugh. She leaned into Wanda's side and gave Skye a thumbs-up. Wanda whispered, "Sucker," under her breath and Pietro threw her a dirty look but continued to set up the DVD.

* * *

Natasha was in the playroom with Skye and her two little chatty friends. She had opted to chaperone while her mom went downstairs and made lunch for everyone. Everything was going great, the little ones were playing with Jemma's chemistry set and she was casually watching t.v. while simultaneously keeping an eye on the little rugrats.

Jemma and Fitz looked like they knew what they were doing with the chemistry set while Skye was content to sit back and watch them. It all started to go downhill when Fitz suggested they divert from the directions and try to complete the miniature volcano by themselves. Jemma was fully against that idea, "Fitz! We can't do that! It says we need to follow the instructions!"

Fitz sighed deeply, "Come on Simmons! You always have to follow the directions! It's boring!"

Jemma sat back, "Are you saying that I'm boring?"

Fitz looked over to Skye but her sister just shrugged and held up her hands. He wasn't going to find help there. He turned back to Jemma, "What? No, I didn't say that! I just meant-"

Jemma interrupted him, "The only way we can do it right is to follow what the directions say!"

She watched as Skye sighed and scooted forward so that she was between her two friends, "Guys, come on! Stop fighting!"

Jemma turned to her, "Tell him I'm right Skye!"

Fitz puffed out his chest, "No Skye, tell her _I'm_ right!"

Skye looked between the two, "You're both kind of right. Sometimes it's better to go by the instructions and sometimes it's better to do your own thing." Skye paused and smiled at both her friends, "Besides, it stopped raining. Let's go play outside!"

Jemma and Fitz both looked at their half-finished volcano before standing up and running out of the room with her little sister with smiles on their faces. They seemed to have already forgotten about their fight. Natasha shook her head and laughed under her breath before following them.

* * *

After dinner one night, she pulled Skye aside and whispered to her, "Skye, do you want ice cream?"

She watched the little girl's eyes light up and she jumped up and down on her toes, "Yes! I love ice cream!"

Natasha leaned in close and whispered, "You should ask dad if we can all go and get some."

Skye nodded and looked up at her, "Why can't you ask too?"

"Well, because you're so good at it!"

Skye nodded and ran off to her dad after Nat gently pushed her in his direction. She followed after her and watched as Skye tugged on his arm, jumped up and down, and made grabby hands. Her dad picked her up and held her so that they were face to face, "What's up sweetie?"

Skye put her arms around his neck, "Can we go get ice cream?"

She watched her dad look over to her mom, "Um, I don't think you should be having ice cream so close to bedtime sweetie."

Skye stuck out her bottom lip and tilted her head, "Please? I haven't had ice cream in a really long time."

Her dad looked like he was going to say no again and this was when the real magic happened. Skye widened her eyes and leaned in to kiss her dad's cheek, "Please daddy? Don't you love me?"

Nat couldn't help but grin when she heard that. There was no way her dad would be able to stand up to that.

She watched as Skye broke her father down. He shook his head and leaned forward to kiss Skye's forehead, "Of course I do Skye, you know that."

Skye smiled at him, "I love you too. More than I love ice cream. It's okay if we don't go."

Her dad had a pained expression on his face. She watched as he looked over to her mom for help. Her mom shook her head no but her dad just let out a breath and said, "Let's go get some ice cream. But you have to go to bed when we get back."

Skye nodded eagerly and her family rushed past her to put their shoes on and pile into the car. Skye was still in her dad's arms and as she passed, Nat held out her hand for a high-five. Skye clapped her little hand against Nat's and smiled real big at her. She knew that she should feel guilty for using her sisters cuteness to get what she wanted, but she couldn't find it in herself to feel bad with ice cream in her near future.

* * *

Nat knew that her sister was powerful, but she didn't know how powerful she was until they were in the grocery store with her mom and they were standing in front of the bakery section. Her mom was standing to the side, ordering different sandwich meats, while she and Skye were admiring the baked goods.

Skye was pointing to the sugar cookies with sprinkles, "Nattie! That looks so yummy! I wish I had a cookie like that!"

Natasha wrapped an arm around Skye's shoulder in an attempt to get the little girl to stop hopping up and down. It didn't work.

Skye kept commenting on the delicious looking cookie until a nice looking lady in an employee uniform walked up to the counter. She was older, mid-fifties, and had a smile on her face. She leaned over the counter and looked at the two of them, "Hello ladies, how are you today?"

Skye straightened up and took a step back so that she was pressed up against Nat's side. She still didn't like talking to strangers that much and Nat couldn't fault her for that.

She smiled up at the lady, "We're alright, just looking at all the delicious treats."

Skye nodded enthusiastically and apparently forgot about her shyness, "Yeah, your cookies look really yummy. Are you a famous chef?"

She watched the older lady blush a little and laugh off the compliment, "Aren't you a kind little girl! I wish I was a famous chef! My cookies are pretty good though."

Skye leaned in close to the display, pressed her forehead against the glass, and stared at the cookie, "They look really good. I bet they taste awesome and you could win on one of those baking competitions! Like Cupcake Wars! But for cookies."

The older lady looked left and right before bending down and taking one out of the display. She held it over the counter and offered it to Skye, "Here you go sugar."

Skye stared at it and hesitated. Nat wondered what she was waiting for. Skye reached out but didn't take the cookie, "Are you sure? I didn't pay for it."

The lady shook her head, "It's alright dear, I'll take care of it. Here." The lady wiggled the cookie and she watched Skye take it and smile.

She took a bite, "Thank you!"

The lady smiled and stood up straight, "No problem sugar, you remind me of my granddaughter."

Skye waved goodbye and they made their way back over to their mom. The little girl split to cookie in half and gave part of it to Natasha. She just shook her head in disbelief and took the cookie half from the little girl.

* * *

Natasha stared in astonishment as Skye talked her mom into taking her to the movies. Her mom barely _ever_ changed her mind and Nat distinctly remembered her telling Skye that they weren't going to the movies today.

Skye was sitting on her mom's lap. She was facing her and had her little legs wrapped around her mom's waist and her arms around her neck. "Please mommy, I _love_ the movies."

Her mom shook her head, "I'm sorry Skye but I just wanted to chill out today. Work was terrible yesterday."

She watched as her little sister widened her eyes, "We can chill at the movies mommy. Please? I love it when you take me to the movies. We get to spend time together."

Skye leaned in and put her head on her mom's shoulder. She watched as the older woman obviously had an inner debate with herself. There was no way that this would work, there was _no_ way… May nodded her head, "Okay, let's go see if anyone else wants to go."

She could not believe that that had worked. She saw Skye sit back and kiss May on the cheek before hopping off of her lap and making her way over to her. Skye grabbed her hand, "Do you want to go to the movies Nattie?"

Nat mumbled, "You have _got_ to be kidding me," under her breath before taking Skye's hand and going to see if anyone else wanted to go.

* * *

What'd you guys think? My little brother has a way of getting everything he wants, so parts of this was inspired by things that have actually happened!

If you have a prompt for me, please send it in! You can do that on here or on my tumblr page and I'll write it down and write it out sooner or later! Thank you for reading! xx -Ariel


	2. Skye's First Visit From The Tooth Fairy

**Hey guys! This was inspired by KC1991's prompt: Maybe skye should lose a tooth and get money from the tooth fairy. I wouldnt be surprised if she never even heard of it before considering her past. Thanks for sending that in! I hope you like it!**

 **If you guys have a prompt for me, you can send it to me on here or on my tumblr page! I write them all down and will get to all of them eventually, I promise!**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye had panicked when she felt her front tooth start to wiggle. She had been eating apple slices and when she had bitten into one, her top right front tooth had felt wobbly. She had winced, it had hurt a little, and carefully took the apple out of her mouth.

She set the half-bitten apple slice back onto her plate and reached up to investigate. She gingerly put a small amount of pressure on her tooth and couldn't help but gasp when it moved a little bit. She didn't really think teeth were supposed to do that.

She completely forgot about her dolls and got up from her place in front of her dollhouse. None of her teeth had ever been loose before. Some kids in her class had missing teeth but Skye had never really paid attention when they talked about what happened. No one had really talked to her about what would happen when she finally started to lose her teeth so she didn't know if this was what was supposed to happen.

She ran out of her room, down the stairs, and into the kitchen. Phil was in there making dinner and she saw Nattie and May sitting at the table in the dining room. She ran up to Phil and tugged on his hand. He pulled his attention away from the cutting board and looked at her.

She caught her breath, "Daddy, my tooth is broken I think."

He gave her a confused look and set his knife down on the counter before crouching down, "Let me have a look."

She smiled real big so that he could see her teeth. He studied her mouth and then shook his head, "I don't see any broken teeth. Which one are you talking about sweetie."

She lifted her hand and pointed to her top right tooth, "It's this one."

He studied it and shook his head again, "I don't see anything wrong with it. Why do you think it's broken?"

She let out a frustrated breath before gently pushing her tooth back with her finger. She took her finger out of her mouth and crossed her arms over her chest, "See? I don't think teeth are supposed to do that."

Phil chuckled and stood up. Skye tilted her head so that she could see him and he smiled down at her, "It's not broken, it's just loose."

Skye scrunched up her nose, "Is it supposed to be loose?"

Phil nodded and reached down to set her on the counter so that he could talk to her while chopping up the vegetables they were going to eat for dinner, "Yes, you still have all your baby teeth. They'll get loose and then fall out."

Skye sucked in a breath, "All of them?!"

Phil laughed, "Yep, everyone's baby teeth fall out."

Skye didn't really like the idea of her teeth falling out of her mouth. They were supposed to be _in_ her mouth. She started swinging her legs back and forth, "Are you for real?"

Phil finished chopping up the vegetables and looked over to her, "I'm for real."

She let out a disgruntled sound and carefully hopped off the counter. She made her way over to the dining room table and wiggled her way in between Nattie and May's chairs. She sighed dramatically, "My tooth is going to fall out of my mouth."

Both May and Nattie jerked their heads to look at her. They were both smiling at her and May reached forward to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes, "Congratulations baby."

Skye frowned. She didn't know why she was being congratulated. She didn't even _want_ her tooth to be loose.

She shook her head, "I want my teeth to stay where they are."

May laughed and Nattie poked her arm, "Yeah, but at least you'll get a visit from the Tooth Fairy."

Skye quickly turned to look at her sister, "What?"

Natasha gave her a startled look, "You've never heard of the Tooth Fairy?"

Skye vigorously shook her head and absentmindedly climbed into May's lap. She felt her mom wrap her arms around her waist but kept her focus on her sister, "No. Is it a _real_ fairy?"

Nattie turned to face her, "Yes, she's a _magical_ fairy. Once you lose your tooth, you put it under your pillow and the Tooth Fairy comes and takes it and leaves money under your pillow."

Skye didn't think she believed her sister, "That's her _job_? She's just going to give me money for a tooth?"

Natasha nodded but Skye still didn't know if she believed her. She looked up to May, "Is she telling the truth?"

May nodded and took one hand away from Skye's waist to reach up and brush her bangs out of her eyes, "She's telling the truth."

Skye tried to wrap her head around the fact that there was a fairy out there who would give you money for your teeth. What did she do with the teeth? Where did she get all her money? What color were her wings?

She leaned back against May's chest, "Why does she want my teeth?"

She felt May shrug, "I don't really-"

Skye cut her off, "Where does she get her money from? How much is a tooth worth?"

Natasha chuckled and May tried to answer, "Well, maybe she has a bank-"

Skye cut her off again, "Where does she live? What color are her wings? She can fly right? Does she have helpers like Santa does?"

She felt May breathe in deeply, "I'm not sure Skye, no one's ever seen her. She only comes when you're asleep."

Skye thought about that. She had a lot of questions and she wanted them answered and if May couldn't answer them for her, she would just have to ask the Tooth Fairy herself.

* * *

Skye's tooth was just being stubborn. It had been a week and her tooth wasn't falling out. She had been wiggling it every chance she got and it was still there, mocking her.

She had been messing with it so frequently that now it would bend backwards and Skye could see that when it finally fell out, there would be a hole in her mouth. Her tooth was literally hanging by a thread. She wanted it to fall out but she was too afraid to yank it out herself so she was waiting for it to fall out on its own.

While she was annoyed that her tooth was still in her mouth, her favorite thing to do was push it with her tongue and gross her siblings out. She would smile at them and then push the tooth forward and wiggle it around. They _hated_ it. Nattie would make a disgusted face but Trip was absolutely repulsed by it. She liked to do it at dinner when he was least expecting it. It was fun.

She had been wiggling her tooth around all week and nothing was working. Fitz had suggested just yanking it out while Jemma said that she should eat a lot of apples because her tooth could get stuck in it. She took Jemma's advice. She had eaten a ridiculous amount of apples this week, she was actually eating one right now.

Phil was helping her with her homework and had made her a plate of sliced apples. She would eat a slice between each math problem. She would bite down on the apple and then poke her tooth with her tongue to see if it was still there. It always was.

Of course _her_ teeth didn't want to fall out. Jemma had gotten a loose tooth three days ago and it had a _lready_ fallen out. She said that the Tooth Fairy gave her a whole dollar for her tooth. Skye wanted money, what kid didn't, but she wanted to talk to the Tooth Fairy even more. She had a lot of questions that she needed answered.

She absentmindedly bit into an apple while Phil explained a math problem to her. She froze when she felt a tug and quickly took the half-bitten apple out of her mouth. She squealed when she saw her small tooth stuck in her snack. She poked her tongue around and felt a hole where her tooth used to be. It felt weird and a little tender so she pulled her tongue back and smiled up at Phil, "I lost my tooth!"

He looked over and she practically shoved her tooth-filled apple in his face. He chuckled and examined the apple, "I'll go grab a Ziploc bag. You can put your tooth in there so you won't lose it."

She nodded and watched him walk into the kitchen. She focused back on her apple and carefully tugged her tooth out of it. She made sure that she didn't drop it and held it securely in her hand until Phil came back with the bag. She gingerly placed her tooth into the bag and then ran up to her room. She wanted to put it under her pillow right away so that there was no way that she could lose it.

She lifted up her pillow and put her tooth directly under it. She wanted to make sure that the Tooth Fairy could easily find her tooth.

Her plan was to pretend to fall asleep and then stay awake until the Tooth Fairy showed up. After that, she wasn't really sure. Maybe she could convince her to stay and talk. She didn't know how many other kids had lost their teeth and were waiting for the Tooth Fairy on the same night so she hoped that she had time to talk to Skye.

She went downstairs and tried to focus on finishing her homework with Phil. He had to remind her to focus but she couldn't. She wanted it to be nighttime so she could see the Tooth Fairy.

* * *

She had finally finished her homework and was watching t.v. with Phil. She was snuggled close to his side when she heard the front door open. May, Trip, and Nattie walked in with a bunch of plastic bags. They had gone to the store to get food and Skye had been waiting for them to come back so she could tell them about her tooth.

She hopped off the couch and ran over to them. They were walking to the kitchen and setting the bags down on the counter. She ran in and smiled real big. She pointed to where her tooth used to be, "Look!"

Trip and Natasha both turned away and Trip said, "Skye, haven't you tortured us enough with that tooth? Give us a break!"

Skye giggled, "No look! It's gone!"

May moved forward and crouched down in front of her, "It looks like someone's getting a visit from the Tooth Fairy tonight!"

Skye started jumping up and down, "I know! I'm so excited!"

May laughed and stood up so that Trip and Natasha had room to see her missing tooth. They both congratulated her before moving back to help put the food away.

May set her on the counter and pulled out her phone, "Smile sweetie."

Skye did as she was told and heard May's camera shutter as she took a picture. May studied her phone and grinned, "Adorable."

Skye smiled and hopped off the counter before helping her family put away the rest of the food.

* * *

Skye tugged on Phil's sleeve for the fifth time, "Is it bedtime yet?"

She had eaten dinner, taken a shower, brushed her teeth, and now she had been bugging her parents about bedtime. She had to admit, normally she would ignore her bedtime until May and Phil told her that she needed to go to sleep, so this was weird behavior for her.

Phil gave her a strange look, "Are you sleepy?"

Skye faked a yawn, "Yes."

May grinned at her, "I know a little girl who wants to be visited by the Tooth Fairy."

Skye couldn't help but smile back, "Yeah, but she won't come over until I'm asleep so I have to go to sleep now."

Phil shrugged, "If you're ready for bed, then it can be bedtime. Do you want us to read you a story?"

Skye nodded and they followed her up to her room. They tucked her in and read her a story. Her eyelids started to droop but she forced herself to stay awake. May and Phil kissed her goodnight and made sure she was comfy before shutting off her light, turning on her nightlight, and shutting her door halfway. Now all she needed to do was pretend to be asleep so that the Tooth Fairy would appear.

She snuggled into her blankets, pulled Alice to her chest, and turned to her side. She didn't know if the Tooth Fairy would use the door or go through her window so she decided to face to window for part of the night and the door for the other part.

She determinedly stared at her window and refused to fall asleep. She was going to catch to Tooth Fairy. Maybe they could be friends.

* * *

When Skye woke up, there was soft light peeking through her window. It was still fairly dark outside and Skye could see the sun starting to poke through the trees.

She blinked and then jerked awake. She had fallen asleep!

She hastily threw her blankets off of her and picked up her pillow. There was a dollar where her tooth had been. She quickly picked it up and saw that there was pink glitter all over it.

She groaned. She had fallen asleep and she had missed her chance to see the Tooth Fairy.

She kept her dollar in her fist and got out of her bed. She looked around her room and saw something sparkling by her windowsill. She squinted at it and rushed over to her window.

There was a trail of pink glitter coming from her window and trailing across her windowsill. The Tooth Fairy must have gotten into her room through there! She looked around and saw more clusters of pink glitter around her room. There was some on her desk, on her bedside table, and on her dollhouse. She squealed and ran to investigate.

The Tooth Fairy had flown all around her room before taking her tooth and giving her money. Skye was kind of sad that she had fallen asleep, she really wanted to meet a real fairy, but that was shadowed by her excitement that _a real fairy had been in her room_.

She kept her dollar in her fist and ran downstairs. She could hear Phil singing to himself in the kitchen and she ran over to him. She waved her dollar at him, "Look daddy! The Tooth Fairy gave me a dollar!"

She jumped at him and he easily caught her before lifting her up, setting her on his hip, and grinning at her, "Let me see!"

She eagerly handed him the glittery dollar bill and watched as he inspected it. He smiled and gave it back to her, "I've seen this glitter before. It's definitely the Tooth Fairy."

Skye squealed and carefully pulled the dollar to her chest so she wouldn't lose it.

She stayed with Phil while he made breakfast and couldn't stop smiling.

May wandered into the kitchen after a little while and Skye straightened up and grinned at her, "The Tooth Fairy gave me a dollar!"

May gasped and walked over to her, "A whole dollar? She must really like you! Let me see."

Skye waved the dollar in May's face and let her grab onto it and inspect it. Nattie walked in behind her. She was rubbing her eyes and still looked half asleep. Skye turned to her, "Nattie look! The Tooth Fairy gave me a dollar!"

Natasha made her way over and plucked Skye's dollar out of May's hands, "Would you look at that. The Tooth Fairy was very nice to you Skye, she only gave me fifty cents for my teeth."

Nat gave May a mysterious look but Skye didn't even catch it, she was too busy reaching for her dollar. Nattie handed it to her and she pulled it close to her chest, "Yeah, I wanted to catch her though."

May leaned forward and kissed her forehead, "Maybe next time sweetheart."

Skye nodded and started poking her teeth with her tongue to see if any of them were loose. She _was_ going to catch the Tooth Fairy.

* * *

Let me know what you guys thought! Little Skye is so cute! I used to get a quarter for my teeth, not a dollar, so Skye is super lucky.

Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	3. Skye Gets Appendicitis

**Hey guys! I'm glad you guys are liking this collection so far! If you haven't read my multi-chapter fic, 'You Can Trust Me,' yet, it might help you understand what's going on because this collection takes place in the same universe and the one-shots don't really go into detail about the family's background :)**

 **ALSO I made a poll where you guys can vote for which one-shot you want to see next. It's on my profile page so go check it out and vote! I'll update it as I get more prompts so keep sending those in!**

 **This was inspired by Zoe's prompt: Skye gets appendicitis. I hope you like it!**

 **Thank you for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye grinned and set her spoon down. May and Phil had given everyone ice cream and they were all sitting down for Family Movie Night. Her suggestion of Tangled had been vetoed so now they were all scattered around the living room watching Balto. She was snuggled between May and Nattie on the couch and she leaned forward to set her empty bowl on the coffee table in front of her.

She leaned back and continued to watch the movie while occasionally turning to Nattie and commenting on something that happened. She felt sad that Jenna's owner, Rosie, was sick but she knew that Balto could help her get the medicine she needed to get better.

About halfway through the movie her tummy started to hurt, right around her belly-button.

She shifted and put her hand over her stomach and started to gently rub it, hoping that would help.

It didn't.

She turned to May and tugged on her sleeve, "Mommy, my tummy hurts."

May looked over to her and made a sympathetic noise, "You probably ate too much ice cream baby."

Skye nodded, she _had_ eaten all of her ice cream very quickly. May wrapped an arm around her and Skye leaned into her side. May's hand gently brushed Skye's away and started to rub comforting circles over her tummy. It didn't really help her belly ache go away but it felt nice.

She ignored her aching stomach and tried to focus on the movie. If she stared at the television really hard and focused on the characters, she could ignore the constant pain in her tummy.

They finished the movie and Phil announced that it was her bedtime. She sighed and went to stand up.

She winced as soon as she was on her feet, "Ow!"

May stood up beside her and gave her a concerned look. Phil came over and kneeled in front of her, "What's wrong sweetheart?"

When she moved, her tummy felt worse. She made sure to stay still but couldn't stop the tears from welling up in her eyes. It _hurt._

She sniffled, "My tummy hurts."

May put a hand on her shoulder, "Still?"

Skye nodded and watched as Phil stood up and disappeared into the kitchen. May brushed her bangs out of her eyes and she saw Phil walk back into the living room with a glass in his hand. He handed it to her, "Why don't you drink some ginger ale? It'll help settle your tummy."

Skye took the glass from him and sipped on her ginger ale. Nattie and Trip came over and gave her sympathetic looks. Trip patted her head, "I hope you feel better Skye."

Skye nodded and let Nattie reach forward and caress her cheek, "Tummy aches suck, don't they?"

Skye nodded again and handed Phil her half-empty glass of ginger ale. He took it and set it on the coffee table before motioning her forward, "Let's go to bed sweetheart. May and I will read you a story."

Skye grabbed onto his hand and followed him upstairs even though every step resulted in a sharp pain from her tummy. They walked into her room and Phil picked her up and set her on her bed while May walked over to her bookshelf and chose a story for them to read.

Skye settled against her pillows but couldn't get comfy. She slowly rolled over onto her side and curled into herself. That helped to ease some of the pain in her stomach and she gratefully took Alice from Phil when he offered the doll to her.

Her parents sat down on her bed and May smiled at her, "I got your favorite story sweetie, Goodnight Moon. You comfy?"

Skye nodded and cuddled close to Alice as she listened to May read her Goodnight Moon. She finished and then Phil read her Stella Luna and after that, May read her When You Give A Moose A Muffin. She couldn't sleep. She felt really uncomfortable and her tummy ache wouldn't let her relax.

May finished her third story and set it on Skye's bedside table, "Alright little girl, it's bedtime. Go to sleep baby."

Skye shook her head, "I'm not tired."

Phil leaned in and kissed her forehead, "Close your eyes and try sweetheart. Goodnight Skye."

May brushed her bangs out of her eyes and leaned in to kiss her cheek, "Sweet dreams."

Skye watched them turn on her nightlight, shut off her light, and shut the door halfway. She curled into a tight ball and shut her eyes like Phil said. She took a deep breath and tried to go to sleep.

She didn't know how long it took for her to finally drift off but she finally felt herself relax and fall into unconsciousness.

* * *

Skye woke up to a sharp pain in her tummy. The pain had moved from her belly button to the lower right side of her belly and it was worse than it was before. It had gone from a dull aching to a sharp and intense pain. Why wouldn't it go away? She told herself that she was never eating ice cream ever again if this is what would happen afterwards.

She felt hot and there was sweat collecting on her forehead. She moved to get out of bed and go to her parents but moving made her pain ten times worse. Her breath caught and she felt tears start to leak out of her eyes. It hurt really badly.

She needed her mom and dad.

She took a deep breath and managed to yell out, "Mommy! Daddy!"

She hoped they heard her and couldn't stop a sob from escaping her. She put her hand over her belly and tried to tell it to stop hurting. It didn't work very well.

After a second or two of silence, she made her voice louder and yelled, "Mommy! Daddy! Please!"

She started crying harder and breathed out a sigh of relief when she heard footsteps running towards her bedroom.

Suddenly her door was jerked open and her lights came on. She blinked as the brightness momentarily blinded her and when her eyes adjusted, she saw May and Phil leaning over her. They both looked worried and May reached forward and brushed some of her tears away, "What's wrong baby?"

She managed to hiccup out an answer, "My t-tummy hurts r-really bad."

Phil gave May a concerned glance and then kneeled down beside her, "Can you point to where it hurts?"

Skye sniffled and pointed to the lower right side of her belly.

Phil looked over to May, "Her appendix."

Skye scrunched her nose up when Phil said that. She had no idea what that was. She was about to ask when Phil gently laid a hand over the lower right side of her tummy and she cried out in pain. She quickly pushed his hand away, "No! That hurts! Daddy, why did you do that?"

Phil let out a pained sound and leaned forward to kiss her forehead, "I'm sorry sweetheart, I was just checking to see if I was right. We need to go to the hospital."

Skye shook her head back and forth, "No, it hurts worse when I move."

Phil gave her a pained look and stood up. He looked over to May, "Can you go wake up Trip and Nat? We need to go to the hospital."

May nodded and ran out of the room. Phil turned back to her and she started crying harder, "I don't wanna go!"

Phil made a sympathetic sound, "I know sweetie, I know. We need to go to the hospital, it'll help make you feel better."

Skye whimpered as a sharp pain overtook her and felt cool hands brush over her forehead before Phil said, "I'm sorry Skye."

She felt hands lift her up and suddenly she was cradled close to Phil's chest. She cried out in pain and grabbed onto his shirt tightly.

She tried to ignore the pain in her belly as Phil walked them downstairs and into the car. May opened up the backdoor and Phil maneuvered himself into the backseat before settling Skye in his lap. She whimpered and heard him apologize profusely before the car started moving.

She shut her eyes, pressed her face against Phil's chest, and focused on breathing deeply. She vaguely heard voices talking around her but she ignored them and told herself that she was fine. Her tummy didn't hurt and she was just going on a drive with her family. She didn't believe herself.

The car stopped but Skye didn't look up to see where they were, she just braced herself because she knew that Phil would be moving her. She tightened her hold on Phil's shirt as he got out of the car, "I'm sorry sweetheart, I'm sorry."

Phil sounded so guilty and Skye hated hearing his voice sound like that. She shook her head and tried to stop panting, "It's okay daddy."

She looked up as they walked into a building. It was bright and she squinted her eyes as she took in her surroundings. She was obviously in a hospital, the walls were white and she could smell disinfectant, and she stayed quiet and Phil made his way up to the front desk with May, Trip, and Nattie following them.

They nurse at the front desk was looking at her computer and looked up when she heard them. Phil stopped in front of the desk, "My daughter had appendicitis."

The nurse stood up and walked around to them, "Are you sure?"

Phil let out an exasperated breath, "Yes I'm sure, I'm a pediatric doctor. We need help right now."

The nurse nodded, "One minute, you can set her on that stretcher over there."

Phil thanked her and walked over to the bed before gently setting her down. Her family joined him and stood over her. Nattie reached forward and brushed Skye's tears away, "It'll be okay маленькая звезда."

Skye nodded and hoped that her sister was right. She felt the bed dip down beside her and looked over to see May slowly lower herself down next to her. She turned onto her side even though it hurt and snuggled close. She whispered, "My tummy hurts mommy."

She felt May press a kiss to the top of her head, "I know baby. The doctor will help you."

They sat in silence for a couple more seconds before she heard footsteps coming towards them. She stayed pressed against May and heard a female voice say, "Is this the little girl with appendicitis?"

Phil said, "Her name's Skye and yes."

She heard the voice say, "Let's move to an exam room."

Suddenly the bed started moving and she looked up to see Phil by the foot of the bed pushing them forward. They rolled into a room and she looked over and saw a nice looking doctor smiling at her. The doctor had on light blue scrubs and her dark blonde hair was pulled up into a ponytail. The doctor looked over to Nattie and Trip, "Can you guys wait in the waiting room? It's a little crowded in here."

Her siblings looked over to her parents and when they nodded at them, Nattie and Trip both exited the room.

May combed her fingers through Skye's hair and the familiar action comforted her. The doctor walked up to her and smiled, "Hey Skye, I'm Sara. What seems to be the problem?"

Skye sniffled, pressed her face close to May's chest, and said, "My belly hurts."

It came out kind of muffled but Sara seemed to understand her, "Where does it hurt?"

She pointed to where she had earlier and Sara nodded. The doctor stepped closer to her, "I'm going to check you over okay?"

Skye nodded and let May gently push her away so that Skye was lying on her back. Sara put a thermometer in her mouth and shone a light in her eyes. The thermometer beeped and Sara glanced at it before clucking her tongue, "Elevated temperature." She scribbled something onto her clipboard before saying, "Tell me if this hurts alright?"

Skye nodded again and felt Sara press her hands against the top of Skye's belly. She shook her head and Sara moved her hands down a little and pressed against her stomach. She shook her head again and then cried out when Sara's hand pressed against the right side of her tummy. Sara quickly took her hands away and walked over to the counter before grabbing something and calling a nurse in.

A nice looking man wearing scrubs with puppies on them walked in and smiled at them. Sara looked over to him, "I'm going to need to draw blood."

Skye flinched when she heard that, "No!"

Phil turned to her, "They have to sweetheart, it'll only sting for a little bit."

Skye shook her head, "No! I don't want to!"

May gently placed her hands on each side of Skye's face and made Skye focus on her, "Skye, they need to take your blood so that they know what's going on and can help you feel better. It'll be okay baby. You can be brave, I know you can."

Skye kept her eyes on May before reluctantly nodding. She didn't look over to see what was happening and she didn't listen when Sara talked to her, she just felt a sharp sting in her arm and forced herself not to cry because she could be brave. She _could._

Once it was over, she wrapped her arms around May's neck and blocked out the voices around her. She shut her eyes and pretended she was somewhere else, maybe on the playground with Jemma and Fitz or playing soccer with Trip and Nattie, not in the hospital.

Her tummy still hurt and after a couple of minutes, May gently tapped her shoulder and Skye looked up. She heard Sara say, "They're testing the blood right now to see if there is an elevated white blood cell count to see if she's fighting off an infection. I'd like to do an ultrasound just to rule out gallbladder issues, bladder infection, UTI, or gastritis, and confirm if her appendix is swollen."

Phil nodded, "Yes, of course."

Sara nodded and walked out of the room only to come back a couple minutes later with a machine rolling behind her. She set it up next to the bed and pushed a couple of buttons before grabbing a bottle and looking at her, "Can you lift your shirt up a little bit Skye?"

Skye obeyed and lifted her shirt before Sara said, "This might be a little cold."

Sara put some gel on her tummy and Skye hissed because it _was_ cold. Sara gently pressed a stick-thingy against her tummy and looked up at the screen attached to the machine. Skye had no idea what she was looking at, everything looked blurry and indistinguishable.

Sara moved the stick-thingy around and nodded before pointing to the screen, "Her appendix is inflamed. I'll check her blood test results but I'm confident that it's appendicitis."

There was that word again. She still had no idea what it meant.

Phil turned to Sara, "When will her surgery be?"

Sara turned to look at him, "I'll have to give her some antibiotics and we'll set up a surgical room. I'm slightly concerned about her pain levels and don't want her appendix to rupture so her surgery will be soon. When did she last eat or drink?"

What was going on?!

She held up her hand, "Wait! What's happening?"

Sara looked over to her and moved closer to the bed, "I'm sorry Skye, this must be confusing. There's a little finger-shaped pouch connected to your large intestine called your appendix. It doesn't do anything, it actually serves no purpose, but right now it's all swollen and angry. We need to take it out before it gets worse."

Skye processed that before scrunching up her face, "I don't need it?"

Sara shook her head, "No, you'll be okay with it gone."

"If I don't need it, why is it hurting me? That's dumb!"

Phil breathed out a laugh and May pressed a kiss to the top of her head. Sara smiled at her, "It is kind of dumb, isn't it? We're going to operate on you and take it out okay? You'll feel much better when it's gone."

Skye winced as another sharp pain in her tummy assaulted her but said, "What do you mean? Operate?"

Phil walked up to her and sat down on the side of the bed, "You'll have to go into surgery sweetheart."

That didn't sound very fun. She bit the inside of her cheek, "Will it hurt?"

Phil smiled at her, "No, they'll give you anesthetic, which is something that will make you go to sleep so you won't feel anything. It'll be okay."

Phil sounded confident and sure of himself so Skye nodded and cuddled back up against May, "Okay."

* * *

Skye didn't know how long they waited until she was rolled into a prep room. She had to change out of her pajamas and into a funny looking hospital gown. Sara had come back into her room and given her antibiotics and Skye had obediently taken them before closing her eyes and trying to ignore the pain in her tummy enough to fall back asleep.

It must have work because she woke up to May's gentle voice. She looked around and Sara was standing in the room as well as the nice looking nurse from before. Her family was standing around her and May got out of the bed but kept a hold on Skye's hand, "We're going to move into the prep room and Sara will give you your anesthesia. When you wake up, you'll feel much better baby."

Skye really wanted the pain in her belly to go away but she was scared. She tightened her grip on May's hand and felt her bed start to move, "I'm scared mommy."

May reached down to push her bangs out of her eyes and Phil grabbed her other hand. He rubbed soothing circles over the back of her hand, "You're going to be fine sweetie, I promise." May nodded along with what Phil was saying and leaned forward to kiss her cheek.

Skye felt a little better once Phil said that. He and May _never_ broke their promises.

They stopped moving and Skye looked around. Sara was walking towards her and there was a man next to her holding a mask. Sara smiled at her, "We're going to put this over your mouth and nose okay? You'll still be able to breathe so don't worry, just breathe in deeply."

Skye nodded and let the man place the mask over her mouth and nose. It felt weird on her face and she didn't really like it. She did as she was told and breathed deeply and heard Sara say, "Can you count back from one hundred?"

Skye's eyelids fluttered and she started to feel sleepy. She felt May and Phil tighten their hold on her hand and she said, "one hundred, ninety-nine, ninety-eight…"

That was as far as she got before she fell asleep.

* * *

When she woke up, her mouth was dry, her eyes felt heavy, and she was sore. Someone was squeezing her hand so she turned her head to look at who was holding her hand. It was May. She looked around her room and saw Phil walking towards her. Nattie and Trip were sleeping in two chairs by the window and Skye could see that it was bright outside so it must be the middle of the day.

She tried to say something but her voice cracked and her throat was really dry. May leaned forward and poured water out of a pitcher and into a cup before handing it to her. She gratefully took a sip before trying again, "My tummy doesn't hurt anymore."

The sharp pain in her belly was gone and was replaced by a dull soreness. May and Phil were right like they always were, she was fine.

Her parents both smiled at her and Phil breathed out a laugh, "That's great sweetheart. How do you feel?"

Skye repositioned herself and May reached forward to put a pillow behind her upper back so that she could sit up a little bit, "Thanks. I feel sore."

Phil nodded, "It's normal to feel sore after surgery. You have a couple more hours before you can get up and walk around though."

Skye didn't mind. She just wanted to lie down next to May and Phil and watch Spongebob on the t.v. in her room.

Skye waved her hands at them and they both carefully sat on each side of her bed. Phil laid down next to her and she snuggled close to him and May stayed seated but kept her hold on Skye's hand.

They stayed in comfortable silence for a little while until her door opened up and Sara walked in. When she saw that Skye was awake, she smiled, "How're you feeling Skye?"

Skye grinned back at her, "I'm okay."

Sara nodded and stopped at the end of her bed, "That's great to hear. You have about seven more hours until you can get up and walk around and you'll have to stay overnight at the hospital for a day or two, but you should be fine. You were very brave."

Skye smiled and blushed at the praise she was receiving and pushed herself closer to Phil before nodding.

Sara leaned forward and patted Skye's shin before saying, "Alright, well I prescribe a lot of jello and ice cream while you recover. Lots of t.v., stories, and hugs."

Skye liked the sound of that, "I have school tomorrow though."

Sara crossed her arms, "Sorry Skye, no school this week."

Skye couldn't help but smile real big. No school, ice cream, and hugs? Maybe this wasn't so bad.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I hope it was at least semi-realistic! All I know about appendicitis and appendectomy's is what I learned from my friend and from articles I read online. I still have my appendix so I've never had to go through this.

I also wanted to clarify that these one-shots happen **AFTER** You Can Trust Me ended (unless I explicitly say otherwise) so none of this took place during the story. Sorry if that was confusing.

I hope you liked it and thank you for reading! If you have a prompt for me, please send it in! xx - Ariel


	4. Skye Gets Appendicitis Part 2

**Hey guys! A guest wanted to see some more recovery time for Skye so this is a continuation of the previous chapter.**

 **I just wanted to clarify, like I did in the last chapter, that this series takes place AFTER 'You Can Trust Me' unless I explicitly say so. Some chapters WILL take place during the story and if that happens, I'll make sure to tell you guys :)**

 **Also! You guys have been sending in some awesome prompts and I feel bad choosing which ones to do next so I decided that you guys could choose! I created a poll on my profile page that you guys can go check out and vote for which prompt you want me to write next. Each new prompt I get, I'll update the poll, so keep sending your ideas in!**

 **Thank you so much for reading! As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Staying in the hospital wasn't nearly as fun as she thought it would be.

She had a couple more hours until she could go home and the last two days had been super boring. She had to stay in bed a lot and the t.v. wasn't playing any good shows so she was stuck watching boring grown-up shows. Most of her toys were at home, Phil had gone back there to get everyone clean clothes and had brought back Alice, Mara, and some coloring supplies, but it wasn't the same. She wanted to go home.

Her tummy was still a little sore and she had a bandage over part of it. Phil said that she was going to have a little scar from her surgery and Skye was kind of mad about that. She wasn't a huge fan of scars.

The first night in the hospital had been alright. She had alternated between cuddling with each of her family members and they had all watched t.v. and told each other funny stories. May and Phil had let her stay up past her bedtime and she had happily fallen asleep a whole hour later than she usually did.

The bed that she had to sleep in wasn't very comfy but she ended up sleeping almost on top of Phil so that wasn't too bad. The nurses brought her a lot of Jello, ice cream, and apple slices, so that wasn't bad either.

It started to get boring on the second day. Nattie and Trip had to go to school and Phil had to go to work so it was just her and May. May tried to make the day less boring but there was only so much she could do. Skye resigned herself to watching melodramatic soap operas as the day dragged on. She would actually rather be in school right now.

It got better when Nattie and Trip came back and brought some of their friends. Skye had been lying down on her uncomfortable bed, watching television with May sitting in one of the chairs going over some paper for work, when they walked in. Skye immediately sat up and smiled.

"Hey Princess! I heard you had a fight with your appendix and won so I thought you deserved a congratulatory teddy bear!" Clint smiled at her and waved around a soft looking teddy bear that was wearing a doctor's uniform. He walked up to her bed and sat down and Skye watched everyone else file into her room after him.

Trip and Nattie waved at her and went to set their bags down over by May. Bobbi, Hunter and Bucky walked in behind them and all stood around Skye's bed. She _loved_ her sibling's friends and was happy that they were here to make her day a little less boring.

She smiled and turned her attention back to Clint, who was waving the teddy bear at her. She took it from him and pushed her face against its soft fur. She loved it.

She pulled the bear close to her chest and grinned, "Thanks Clint. He's so cute!"

Skye scooted over a little bit so that Bobbi could sit on one side of her while Nattie sat on the other side. Bucky and Clint sat by her feet and Trip and Hunter dragged chairs over to the side of her bed.

Bobbi wrapped an arm around her shoulder and Skye leaned into her, "I had to get my appendix taken out too. It wasn't very fun, was it?"

Skye shook her head and Bobbi and Bucky both made sympathetic noises.

Hunter caught her attention, "At least you don't have to go to school, right? That sounds fun."

Skye shook her head and sighed dramatically, "I'm soooo bored I would rather be at school right now."

Clint gasped, "You'd rather be at school?!"

Hunter shook his head, "We'll just have to fix that now won't we?"

Skye giggled and nodded.

They all took turns telling her funny stories and making up stories about princesses from faraway lands. They told her about what was going on at their school and Clint told a bunch of jokes that she thought was funny but no one else did. Staying at the hospital was way more fun with everyone here with her.

After an hour or two, Clint, Hunter, Trip, and Natasha all left to find the food court. May excused herself to go call Phil in the hallway so Skye was left with Bobbi and Bucky.

She was sitting cross-legged up against the back of her bed with Bobbi right next to her. Bucky was sitting in the middle of her bed facing them. It was quiet for a little bit and Skye had noticed that Bucky had been pretty silent since they had gotten here. She watched his eyes roam around the room nervously and saw him subtly flinch when the nurses would quickly walk past the door.

She tilted her head, "Are you okay?"

Bucky looked back to her and smiled. Skye thought that it looked a little forced, "I'm fine. How are _you_ feeling?"

Skye shook her head, "I'm okay... Why do you look so nervous?"

Bucky took a deep breath and ducked his head, "I'm not a huge fan of hospitals."

Skye scrunched up her nose. She didn't think that hospitals were too bad. They smelled funny and they were pretty boring but that was as bad as they got.

She was about to say that when she remembered that Bucky had been in a car accident, just like she had. She didn't really remember much about going to the hospital after her accident; she had only had a couple scrapes and bruises and was able to leave fairly quickly, but Bucky had lost an arm. Skye bet that he had had to spend a lot of time in the hospital. No wonder he didn't like it.

She carefully crawled over, making sure to not tug on her stitches, and sat in front of him. She put one hand on his prosthetic arm and her other hand grabbed onto his real arm. She smiled at him, "It's okay, I'll keep you safe."

Bucky breathed out a laugh and grinned at her, "Thank you Skye."

She was happy that he looked happier. She quickly wrapped her arms around him in a gentle hug before pulling back and grinning at him, "No problem. I'm happy you're here, I like it when you guys hang out with me."

She felt fingers comb through her hair and looked back when Bobbi said, "We like hanging out with you too Skye."

She turned back to Bucky and saw him nodding, "Yeah, you're like the little sister I never had."

Skye laughed and let Bobbi put her hair into braids while she played with her dolls and new bear with Bucky.

Everyone came back and hung out for a little while until they had to leave because Skye was being discharged and Phil was coming to pick them up.

* * *

Recovering from surgery _sucked_. She couldn't go to school or to the playground or do anything that involved running around, so basically she couldn't have any fun.

Actually, _most_ of recovery sucked, some parts were good. The good parts were that either May or Phil stayed at home with her for the rest of the school week. They let her eat a lot of ice cream and didn't complain when she wanted to watch Disney movies.

She wasn't ashamed to admit that she liked being the center of her family's attention. She had waited a very long time to have a family that liked taking care of her and she wasn't going to waste the opportunity to put that to the test.

They were great… but she was sick of doing nothing all day. She was ready to go back to school and see her friends and run around. That's why she was currently tugging on May's sleeve and using her whiney voice, "Pleeeaassee? Please mommy please?"

May sighed, "Fine, I'll see if they can come over. But only if you promise not to run around okay?"

Skye nodded eagerly and smiled. It was Saturday and she hadn't seen any of her friends since Monday at school. She would be able to go back to school in two days but she _really_ missed her friends. That's why she had spent the past ten minutes convincing her mom that it would be okay if Jemma and Fitz came over to play with her. May thought that if her friends came over, she would forget to be careful and end up hurting herself. Skye had to admit that that was a possibility but she was determined to make May proud.

She watched as May called her friends parents and talked to them. When she hung up, Skye stared expectantly at her, "What'd they say?"

May walked over to her, "They said yes and Jemma's mom will bring them over in a couple minutes because they're both over at her house. I mean it Skye, I really need you to be careful."

Skye nodded and reached up. May lifted her up and carefully held her so that they were face to face, "I promise mommy."

May gave her a small smile, "Good. I worry about you, sweetie. I don't want you to hurt yourself."

Skye grinned and felt warmth rush through her. It felt really good to have people who cared about her like her family did. She leaned forward and kissed May on the cheek, "I'll be good, I promise."

May gingerly pulled her closer, "I know you will baby. I love you."

Her mom leaned in and rubbed their noses together and Skye giggled softly, "How much?"

May pulled back a little, "I love you to the moon and back-"

Skye finished for her, like she always did, "More than all the stars in the sky."

May nodded, "Forever."

Skye smiled brightly at her and jerked her head around when she heard the doorbell ring, "They're here!"

They went to the door and Skye tried not to wiggle around even though she was excited so that May knew that she was serious about being good. May opened the door and Skye saw Jemma's mom, Jemma, and Fitz waiting on the other side of it. She smiled and waved at her friends and they waved back.

Jemma's mom grinned at her, "How're you feeling Skye?"

Skye tapped on May's shoulder and her mom put her down, "I'm okay. I'm not even sore anymore!"

Jemma's mom smiled, "That's good to hear!" She looked down at Jemma and Fitz, "You guys be good for Melinda okay? I'll come and get you after dinner."

Both of her friends nodded seriously and Jemma hugged her mom before they both moved over to stand next to her. Jemma smiled brightly at her, "Hey Skye! You missed a lot of school."

She grimaced, "I know. I'm gonna have a bunch of homework."

Fitz nodded, "We learned about jungle animals and made animal masks in art class! I made a monkey mask!"

Jemma interjected, "I made a panther mask!"

Skye stomped her foot, "Aw man! That sounds really fun! I wish I was there."

Her friends looked at each other before Jemma shook her head, "Nah, it wasn't that fun."

Fitz nodded, "Very boring stuff."

Skye knew that they were lying to make her feel better but she didn't mind. May ushered them inside and they went up to the playroom after May asked her to be careful one more time.

They sat down on the playroom floor and Skye grabbed the Lego box for them to play with. They started making a Lego building and Fitz glanced at her, "Jemma's mom said you had to have surgery."

Jemma nodded, "I asked and that means that the doctors cut you open!"

Skye scrunched her face up. When Jemma said it like that, it sounded scarier than it really was.

"Yeah, they took out my appendix." Skye smiled proudly because it had taken her a long time to remember that word and say it right.

Fitz looked confused, "What the heck is that?"

Skye laughed, "My doctor said it's a finger-shaped pouch that is attached to my large intestine."

She repeated what Sara said to her even though she didn't know what half of what she said meant.

Jemma raised an eyebrow, "Why did they have to take it out?"

Skye shrugged, "Because it was hurting really bad."

Fitz held up a hand, "Wait! So they took it _out_ of your body? Don't you need it? Are you going to _die_?!"

Skye laughed, "No I'm not going to die! You can live without your appendix."

Fitz threw his hands up in the air, "If you can live without your appendix, why do we have one?"

Skye shrugged again, "That's exactly what I said.

* * *

What'd you guys think? Skye would be so bored sitting around doing nothing all day! I forgot how much I love writing Bucky and Skye's relationship, it' so adorable :)

Don't forget to go check out the poll on my profile page! The next one-shot I write out will be the option that got the most votes. Keep sending your amazing prompts in! They're all so cute and you guys have such good ideas! You can either submit them on here or on my tumblr page (URL: natalierromanova) and I'll write them down and add them to the poll :)

Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	5. Natasha Learns More About Skye's Past

**Hey guys! The prompt with the most votes came from silverliningineachcloud and it was: 'What about if Skye opened up to Nat about some of the abuse from a previous home and Nat held it together for Skye but later got really angry and May has to come help her calm down?'It kind of veers away from your prompt but I tried to keep things as realistic to my characters as possible. I hope you still like it! Also, if you haven't checked out silverliningineachcloud's own kid!Skye fic, 'The Compass That Guides Us,' you definitely should! It's amazing :)**

 **I created a poll on my profile page where you can go and vote for which one-shot you would like to see next so go check that out and vote! Also, keep sending in your prompts and I'll update the poll with each new prompt I receive!**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Nat liked hanging out with her little sister. Skye was easy to talk to and Nat had felt a connection to her since the moment she had come to live with them. She had always wanted a little sibling and she had completely lucked out with Skye.

She couldn't imagine her life without the little girl and it was nice to know that Skye felt the same way about her.

Skye had been living with them for six months now and the running joke in the family was that the little girl was her mini-me. Nat had to admit that it was a little true. She was absolutely pleased that Skye wanted to be like her, but her little sister also wanted to be like Wanda and her mom so it wasn't like Skye was transforming into an exact replica of her… but when they were together, they were a dynamic duo. Skye would repeat a lot of what Nat said and tried to act like her. It was pretty cute.

That was kind of what was happening right now. Her family was sitting around the living room dong various things. It felt nice to just hang out with everyone even though they were all engaged in different activities. Wanda and her mom were talking quietly on the couch. Her dad and Pietro were playing a card game and sitting around the coffee table while she, Skye, and Trip were sitting on the floor watching television.

They were trying to find something to watch on t.v. and Trip went past Elf on the guide. She wasn't a huge fan of the Christmas movie and it was the middle of March for crying out loud!

She huffed out a breath and Trip looked over to her, "What?"

She pointed at the screen, "There's a Christmas movie playing in the middle of March."

Trip grinned and looked back to the television. He clicked on Elf and the movie started to play.

Skye, who was sitting cross-legged between the two of them, turned to look at Trip, "What's this?"

He smiled at her, "It's the best Christmas movie you're ever going to see."

Skye stared at the television screen for a couple seconds before turning back to Trip, "He's supposed to be an elf? He's too tall!"

Trip nodded, "He's a human who was raised by elves, that's why he's so tall. Christmas is already the best holiday ever and this movie makes it even better."

Nat crossed her arms, "Christmas isn't the best holiday ever, there are other awesome holidays."

Both of her siblings turned to look at her. Trip raised an eyebrow, "Uh, yes it is. Who doesn't like presents?"

Skye grinned, "I _love_ presents."

Natasha shook her head, "Presents are cool but Christmas is vastly overrated."

Trip sat up and straightened his back, "What are you talking about? Everybody loves Christmas!"

Nat crossed her arms, "Of _course_ everybody loves Christmas. They start playing Christmas songs in October, people hang decorations all over the place, and all people talk about for three whole months is that stupid holiday. Christmas is shoved down our throats for, like, four months out of the year. If you don't like it, you're deemed an outcast in our society."

Trip blinked at her, "It's getting deep over here."

Skye crawled over and sat close to her side, "What holiday do you think is the best Nattie?"

She smiled down at Skye, "Easter, for sure."

Trip slapped his hand down on the floor, "You can't tell me that you think _Easter_ is better than _Christmas_. Why would you even think that?!"

She raised an eyebrow, "Free candy, good food, Easter egg hunts."

Skye nodded, "Yeah, Easter is better."

Trip turned to the little girl, "You're just saying that because Tasha said that."

Skye shook her head, "No I'm not!"

She could tell that Trip was getting worked up over this and she had to admit, it was pretty amusing to watch. He glared at them, "Skye, Santa has elves! He gives presents to kids all over the world in one night! How is that not cooler than a little Easter bunny?"

Skye crossed her arms just like Nat did and said, "The Easter bunny hides eggs for kids all over the world too. _And_ he doesn't have elves to help him, he does it all on his own."

Nat put a hand on Skye's shoulder, "Good point Skye."

The little girl grinned up at her and leaned into her side, "Thanks Nattie."

She turned back to Trip and smirked, "Hey, it's okay if you like Christmas, everyone's entitled to their opinions. I'm just saying that it isn't the only awesome holiday."

Skye nodded, "Yeah, it's not the only awesome holiday."

She couldn't help but laugh as Skye repeated exactly what she said and held herself in the same manner that she did. Trip rolled his eyes, "Yeah okay, you guys always team up against me."

That was actually fairly true and she couldn't help but smile. She uncrossed her arms and stuck her tongue out at her brother, "Don't be jealous."

Skye uncrossed her arms and smiled, "Yeah, don't be jealous."

Trip laughed, turned back to the television, and started watching his Christmas movie. She turned to Skye, "Let's go play on the swings. I don't really like this movie."

Skye nodded and they both stood up and told their parents they were going outside. They each sat down on a swing and she looked over to Skye, "So is Easter really your favorite holiday?"

Skye shrugged, "It's alright. Christmas was never very fun because sometimes I didn't get any toys or presents. I wasn't allowed to go trick or treating at the orphanage and I've never really had a real birthday party, so I guess Easter is my favorite. When I lived with the Harvey's, I went to an Easter Egg Hunt with them and it was really fun!"

Skye was grinning and Nat couldn't help but feel terrible that Skye seemed to have so many unhappy memories. All little kids should at least be able to celebrate and have fun on the holidays.

Skye didn't seem to think anything of her unhappy holidays, she was happily swinging on her swing and smiling. Since Skye had started to regularly talk to Jiaying, she was having an easier time talking to them about her troubled past. The therapist was helping Skye a lot and it was nice that Skye felt comfortable enough to open up to them, but sometimes Skye would say something about her past that would make Nat's teeth clench and her hands curl up into fists.

She knew that Skye had had a tough time before she came to live with them but to actually hear some of the stuff that she went through made anger flood through her. She made sure to remain calm in front of Skye, she didn't want the little girl to think she couldn't talk to her about what happened to her, but it was hard sometimes.

She forced herself to smile at Skye, "Were the Harvey's your favorite family to live with?"

Skye jerked her head around to look at her, " _You're_ my favorite family to live with!"

She couldn't help but chuckle a little, "Besides us, I mean."

Skye nodded, "Yeah, they were really nice. They were never mean to me and they never did bad things. I miss them a lot sometimes."

She saw Skye deflate a little and berated herself for bringing up something that made her little sister sad. She ignored the part about how there _were_ peoplewho were mean and did bad things to Skye and was about to change the subject when Skye said, "They died in a car accident."

Natasha already knew that but she didn't tell Skye, she just listened as the little girl continued to talk, "I thought that I killed them, Mr. Ramsey said that I killed them, but I didn't. It was an accident and accidents aren't anyone's fault, mommy and Jay say so."

Nat gritted her teeth but nodded and managed to say, "They're right, accidents aren't anyone's fault."

Skye nodded absentmindedly and kept talking. Nat didn't think Skye was looking for a conversation and she was more than happy to just listen and be here for her little sister, "The Ramsey's weren't very good. Mr. Ramsey was mean and threw things at me and was bad. The Harvey's were the best family I lived with until I came to live with you. I love being in your family."

After that, Skye went back to focusing on her swing and Nat listened as the little girl started humming a Frozen song. Skye swung on like nothing happened and she didn't just recount her past abuse. Nat didn't know how Skye was able to move on so quickly but Nat couldn't do that. She got off her swing to push Skye.

She laughed and kept talking to Skye even as she felt a steady flow of anger run through her. No matter how many times she heard it, she would still never be able to be come to terms with Skye's past. Her little sister had been through too much and she didn't know who could have ever purposefully hurt _anybody_ , let alone a little kid. She had seen the scars on Skye's belly, heard some stories about what had happened to her, she'd seen the way that Skye had reacted around them when she first came to live with them. She wasn't an idiot, she knew that Skye had been abused, neglected, tormented, and it _killed_ her to think about that.

She wanted to protect Skye, to keep her safe and happy, and she had generally been able to do that. Skye was happy most of the time and she was safe in their house, the only thing Nat couldn't protect her from was her past, and she hated that.

She stepped back from the swings and smiled at Skye, "I'm going to the bathroom. Are you okay out here?"

Skye nodded but Nat knew that her little sister didn't really like to be alone so she said, "I'll send Wanda out here to play until I get back."

Skye nodded again and kept swinging.

Her smiled melted away as she turned towards the house and walked inside. She walked past the living room on her way upstairs and said, "Hey Wanda, could you go play with Skye for a little bit? I have to go to the bathroom."

Her older sister nodded and smiled at her before heading towards the backdoor. Nat moved past the rest of her family and made her way upstairs. Instead of heading into the bathroom, she turned and walked into her bedroom.

She stood in the middle of her room and looked around. She wasn't really sure what she was doing in here but she didn't think that she could keep pretending to be alright in front of Skye any longer.

She tried to take a deep breath and calm herself down like her parents taught her to do but she couldn't. All she could see in her head was images of tiny Skye getting yelled at, having things thrown at her, being scared of the family she was living with, and it was too much.

She didn't _mean_ to knock over her desk chair, it just happened. She hadn't had an outburst like this in a long time, since she was at least eleven, and she immediately felt bad. She felt her anger slowly melt away and turn to sadness. Skye didn't deserve the childhood that she was given. She deserved so much better than broken homes and scary parents and even though she was with them now, it made Nat miserable to think about what the little girl had to go through to get here.

Kicking chairs wasn't going to help anybody. She knew that letting her anger get the better of her like this wasn't healthy, her parents and therapist had told her that countless times, so she sighed and leaned over to pick up her chair. She heard footsteps heading towards her room so she quickly put her chair back where it belonged and turned to her doorway just as her mom walked in.

The older woman arched an eyebrow, "Everything alright?"

She was about to brush off what had happened but then her eyes started welling up with tears out of nowhere. She forced herself not to cry and took a deep breath, "No, everything isn't alright. Mom, Skye was _abused_. She's had things thrown at her, she's been yelled at, and she was scared of the people she used to have to live with, and it's _not_ alright. Skye talks about it and I don't think she understands how messed up her past is!"

She was breathing quickly and refused to cry. What did _she_ have to cry about?

Her mom walked towards her and put a gentle hand on her shoulder, "She knows how messed up it is. I know that it's hard to hear about Skye's past sometimes, believe me, I know that, but it's good that she's talking about it. She's healing and we should encourage her to keep talking about her past, no matter how hard it is to hear."

Nat nodded. She knew that her mom was right but sometimes it was hard, "How do you handle it?"

She watched as her mom grimly smiled, "I just remember that I reported everyone who has ever hurt Skye and I know that they're now under investigation and are probably unable to foster any other kids." Her mom paused to lean forward and brush Nat's hair over her shoulder, "Plus, Skye's with us now. She's safe and happy and that's all that really matters right now."

She thought about it and nodded. Skye didn't like seeing her angry or sad and Nat didn't want to make Skye feel upset, so she shook off her negative feelings and tried to smile at her mom, "You're right."

May brushed a kiss over her forehead and smiled at her, "Of course I am. You okay?"

Nat let out a breath, "Yeah, I'm alright. Skye's probably wondering where I am though."

Her mom raised an eyebrow, "What was that noise?"

Nat felt her cheeks heat up and looked at her feet, "I knocked over a chair."

May stayed quiet and she continued talking, "I didn't mean to and I know it was wrong to let things get to me like that."

The older woman stayed silent for a couple more seconds before surprising her by leaning in to kiss her forehead, "I'm so proud of you."

Nat pulled her gaze off of her shoes and looked up to her mom. She was not expecting that response, "What?"

May grinned a little, "I'm just very proud of you. You're so mature and I know how hard it was for you to get to where you are now considering where you started."

She felt her cheeks grow a little warmer at the praise she was receiving and heard her mom laugh, "I love you sweetie."

She smiled, "I love you too mom."

May caressed her cheek, smiled at her, and motioned for them to head back downstairs, "Come on, Skye's probably wondering where you are."

She led her mom out of her room and back downstairs. May squeezed her hand and then sat down by her dad while Nat made her way back outside. She paused when she saw the scene before her.

She hadn't noticed it when she walked through the living room, but apparently Trip and Pietro had joined her sisters outside. All the big kids were running away from Skye and Nat guessed that they were playing tag and Skye was It. Pietro was climbing on top of the monkey bars so that Skye couldn't reach him while Trip ran and hid behind a tree and Wanda taunted Skye from beside the slide.

Skye was jumping up and down and trying to tag Pietro when Nat cleared her throat and the little girl looked over to her, "Nattie's back!"

She couldn't help but smile at the obvious happiness in Skye's voice. Her mom was right, Skye was happy and healing right now and that was really all that mattered. She would try and keep that in mind the next time Skye brought up her past. She couldn't guarantee that she would be able to maintain her cool, but she would try her hardest.

She started walking towards her little sister, "What's going on here?"

Skye grinned and ran over to her, "We're playing tag and I'm It. Can you be on my team?"

She grinned and held out her hand. Skye took it and they both started walking back towards Pietro, "I would _love_ to be on your team."

Skye squealed and Pietro pointed at them from his perch on top of the monkey bars, "Hey, no fair! There are no teams in tag!"

Nat lifted Skye up and the little girl easily tapped Pietro's shoulder. She smirked at him, "Too bad, you're it."

Skye giggled as Nat set her down and they both ran away, hand in hand.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I absolutely _love_ Nat and Skye's relationship. I think it's freakin adorable.

If you have an idea for a one-shot you would like to see, please send it in! You can do that either on here or on my tumblr page and I'll write it down, add it to the poll, and write it out! Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	6. The Coulson's Go To The Beach

**Hey guys! The next most voted for prompt was one given to me by my best friend and it's: 'Skye goes to the beach with her whole family. Even Wanda and Pietro'. She doesn't have an account but I send her my chapters and she actually came up with this while we were at the beach together about a little while ago. I hope you guys like it!**

 **Also, I forgot to tell you guys that since I regularly update the poll with each new prompt I receive, you guys are allowed to go back and vote more than once! Keep sending in your wonderful prompts (which you can do on here or on my tumblr page) and keep voting for which one you want to see next!**

 **Aaaaanndd I may or may not be planning out a sequel to 'You Can Trust Me' *winky wink*.**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Skye, please stay still sweetie."

She tried not to wiggle around but she could see the ocean _right there_ and she wanted to run to it _so badly._

So far, it had been a pretty fun spring break but it had gotten even more exciting when Pietro had announced that he wanted to go to the beach. They had the time to drive there, they still had half a week left of their break, and they didn't have any plans so they had all decided that a beach day would be fun.

Skye had still been half-asleep when May had woken her up really early and had helped her put on her bathing suit and a sundress before pulling her hair into two pigtails. Her mom had carried her to the car, where she promptly fell back asleep as soon as they pulled out of the driveway. She woke up with Wanda sitting beside her and on an unfamiliar road. She didn't mind that she had no idea where they were.

Trip, Nattie, and Pietro were still sleeping so she sang songs with Wanda until they all woke up. After that, they played fun car games until they _finally_ made it to the beach. They had parked in a parking lot nearby and everyone else was unloading their beach supplies from the car while Phil tried to put sunscreen on her. He was taking a really long time.

She let out a frustrated breath and looked up at Phil, "Daddy, go faster!"

Phil sighed, "Hold still while I put this on your face and then we can go find a place to set up okay?"

She nodded and stopped looking around long enough for Phil to put sunscreen all over her face. She accidently licked some off her lips and shuddered in disgust. It tasted really bad.

He finally finished with the sunscreen and Phil looked as relieved as she felt. She grabbed onto his hand and waited as he picked up a rainbow-colored beach umbrella with his other hand. Everyone else had various things in their hands, towels, beach bags, a cooler, and Skye grinned at all of them. She had never been to the beach before.

Nattie had jean shorts and a white tank top on over her light pink bathing suit, while Wanda wore a pretty blue sundress over her black and white polka-dot bathing suit, and they were both holding onto one side of a mid-sized cooler. Pietro, who had on black and blue striped swimming trunks and a grey shirt, was carrying some beach chairs. He looked kind of funny because the four chairs he was holding were balanced precariously against each other and looked like they were going to fall over at any moment. Trip was wearing black swimming trunks and a blue shirt and had three different bags on his shoulders. Skye knew that one of those bags was filled with a bunch of beach toys, including plastic pails and shovels, and she was excited to play with them. Her mom had on jean shorts and a black tank top. Skye could see the strings to her red bathing suit where it tied behind her neck and she had another bag resting on her shoulders.

She impatiently tugged on Phil's hand, "Can we go now?"

She watched as her dad looked over to everyone, "We all set?"

Everyone nodded. Pietro lost his balance a little and one of the chairs toppled to the ground. May leaned down and picked it up for him and he smiled gratefully at her.

Skye let out another impatient breath, "Let's _go_ already!"

May grinned at her, "Alright, alright. Hold your horses, little girl."

They started walking towards the golden sand and Skye scrunched up her nose, "I don't have any horses. How can I hold them?"

Trip laughed and May just shook her head.

Skye shrugged and instantly forgot about her conversation with her mom when she stepped onto the sand. She was wearing sandals and let go of Phil's hand to quickly pull them off so that she could feel the sand beneath her feet.

She wiggled her toes and squealed in delight at the unusual feeling of sand surrounding her feet, "It's so soft!"

She grabbed onto Phil's hand again and held her shoes in her other one. He looked down at her, "We can make a sandcastle a little later. How does that sound?"

Skye nodded in excitement and smiled real big, "Okay!"

She turned her head and looked over to the ocean. Small waves were breaking against the shore and the water was a beautiful bluish-green color. There were enough clouds in the sky to combat the brightness of the sun and a gentle breeze lightly blew through her hair. The end of her pigtails tickled against her back and she blindly followed Phil and the rest of her family until they stopped at a random spot.

Everyone set their things down and Skye saw her mom pull out a sheet and start to spread it out on the sand. She felt restless. She _really_ wanted to go to the water.

She tugged on Phil's hand, "Can I go see the water?"

Phil looked down at her, "Okay sweetie. Be careful though."

She untangled their hands and heard Phil say, "Nat, Pietro, could you go down to the water with your sister? Keep an eye on her please."

Nattie and Pietro both held out a hand towards her and she took them before pulling her siblings towards the water.

Skye looked down at her feet as they walked towards the ocean. She could see shells poking out of the sand and the closer they got to the water, the denser the sand got. She felt it start to get damp and looked up as water crept towards her toes.

She glanced up at Nattie and her sister gave her an encouraging smile so she took a deep breath and stepped forward so that her feet were partially submerged in saltwater.

The water was cool and she could smell the salt in the air.

She let out a laugh. The beach was _amazing_. She wiggled her toes around and let out a surprised sound when her feet sunk a little lower into the sand.

Suddenly, water surged up and crashed against her calves. It splashed against her thighs and she yelped and jerked back. The ocean was attacking her! She scrambled out of the water, behind Pietro's legs, and tried to climb up him.

He laughed, picked her up, and set her on his hip. She looked over to him, "Why did it do that?"

He wiped a drop of saltwater off of her cheek and took a step further into the ocean. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. She couldn't swim.

"It's just the waves. They aren't very big right now but you should still be careful because they might be able to knock you over, you're so little. You don't have to be afraid of the waves, it's just water."

She peered down and looked at the water swirling around Pietro's ankles. She glanced over to her sister and saw that Nattie was happily digging her feet into the sand. Both of her siblings looked happy enough and it didn't bother them when the waves pushed against their legs so Skye nodded and tapped Pietro's shoulder so that he knew she wanted to be put back on the ground.

He took a step back and set her down in front of him but grabbed onto both of her hands. He held their hands slightly over her head and in front of her and kept her steady as another wave crashed into her legs. Water quickly climbed up her calves only to draw back into the ocean and this time Skye didn't run away, she stood still and smiled. The ocean wasn't attacking her, it was just saying hello.

She grinned up at Pietro and pulled her hands back so that she could walk over to her sister, who was still digging her feet into the wet sand.

She looked back and saw that the rest of her family was almost finished setting up everything. A sheet was spread out on the sand and the rainbow-colored umbrella was standing next to it and providing shade. The four beach chairs were clustered around the sheet and the cooler was placed by one of them. Bags were scattered around and Wanda had already taken off her sundress and was lying down, reading a book on a towel in the sun.

She focused back onto the ocean and this time when a wave came crashing towards her, she ran out of the way and tried not to let the water touch her toes. She laughed and ran back up to the ocean only to sprint back up the sand in an attempt to evade the water creeping towards her. Nattie saw her and joined in and it became a game; if the water touched you, you lost. It was fun and kind of hard because each wave was quickly replaced by another.

Pietro had joined their little game and she was shrieking with laughter even though she was starting to get a little out of breath. A wave crashed towards them and this time she was too slow as she backpedaled away from it. Before the water reached her toes, she felt someone grab her around the waist and gently lift her up. She laughed and kicked her legs in the air before turning to see who had grabbed her. She smiled as May pulled her into her chest and cuddled her close. The rest of her family, minus Wanda, was making their way to the water.

She wrapped one arm around her mom's neck and pointed down to the wave coming towards them, "Look mommy! The ocean is saying hi!"

May chuckled, "It is?"

Skye nodded, "Yep! It sent the waves to come and play with me!"

May kissed her cheek and set her back onto the sand, "The ocean must like you sweetie."

* * *

Skye was building a sandcastle with Phil, Wanda, and Nattie while May sat in a chair next to them and watched. Trip and Pietro were throwing a football back and forth by the water and the sun was high in the sky.

They had been at the beach for an hour or two and Skye had spent the majority of that time playing her wave game with her family and building her sandcastle. It was an _awesome_ sandcastle.

Skye packed damp sand into her pails and Phil dutifully flipped the buckets over so that they could make their sandcastle bigger. Nattie was working on a moat and Wanda was gathering pretty shells for them to decorate the castle with.

They finished the castle and May took a picture with them sitting by it. Skye admired her work and heard her mom say, "Are you hungry?"

Skye nodded and moved to sit under the shade on the sheet. The rest of her family wandered over and May and Phil sat by her while everyone else claimed a chair to sit in. They pulled the cooler over to them and Phil started handing out containers with fruit, bags of chips, and water.

Skye munched on some pretzels and watched with interest as seagulls started creeping closer and closer to them. The birds would land a couple feet away and then slowly start to inch closer to her. One bird in particular kept getting close to her and right now she was staring at it. She slowly brought a pretzel to her mouth and bit into it.

The bird stared at her.

She chewed and swallowed before staring back at the bird. She felt bad for eating in front of it because it had no food.

She tilted her head, "Sorry little birdy, this is my food, not yours."

The bird continued to stare at her and quickly flew away when May spoke up, "Don't feed them sweetie, they won't leave us alone if you do."

Skye nodded and finished up her food. The birds were still standing around them and Trip slowly stood up. He whispered to her, "Come on Skye."

She stood up and grabbed onto his offered hand. They slowly started walking towards the birds and stopped a safe distance away from them. Trip leaned down and whispered, "When I say 'go', let's run towards them. It'll be fun."

Skye nodded and waited until Trip quietly said, "Go," before she sprinted towards the birds. Trip was right beside her and he was waving his arms around and shouting at the birds. She laughed and watched as the birds quickly flew away from them. They landed a couple feet away and she and Trip ran over and they scattered again.

Trip laughed and led her back to their family. May arched an eyebrow and Trip shrugged, "What? It's fun!"

Skye nodded and May chuckled before going back to putting the food away. Pietro stood up and pulled his shirt off, "Let's go swimming."

Nattie grinned and stood up before saying, "Race you to the water!"

Nattie and Pietro ran towards the ocean and Wanda followed after them. Trip hastily took off his shirt before sprinting after them, "Hey! No fair!"

Skye hung back. She couldn't swim.

May and Phil finished putting everything away and she felt them focus their attention on her. Phil appeared next to her, "You don't want to go swimming?"

Skye dug her toes into the sand, "No."

May kneeled down beside her, "Why not? Can you swim?"

She felt her cheeks heat up and shook her head.

Her mom reached forward and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "That's okay, we'll teach you later. For now, you can still play in the water, right?"

Skye thought about it and nodded. May grinned at her and helped her tug off her sundress so that it didn't get caught in her pigtails. Her mom took off her tank top and shorts and her dad pulled off his shirt and they both led her towards the water.

She could see her siblings splashing around in the waves and couldn't help but smile. Trip snuck up behind Pietro and shoved him underwater. Skye laughed and watched as Pietro popped out of the water and splashed Trip in retaliation.

She walked into the water and stopped when she got knee deep. Phil walked a couple feet ahead of her and turned around, "Come on Skye, I've got you."

She looked up to May and her mom nodded encouragingly. She cautiously made her way towards her dad and felt the water reach her belly-button. She stopped a little bit away from Phil and shook her head, "It's too deep daddy."

Phil shook his head, "It'll be okay, trust me."

Skye _did_ trust him so she took a deep breath and another step forward. The water moved up her belly and _finally_ she made it to Phil. He smiled and pulled her into his arms. He set her on his hip and May joined them before Phil started walking deeper into the ocean. He stopped when the water reached his waist and Skye loosened her chokehold on his neck. She felt safe in Phil's arms even though she couldn't see the bottom.

May stood next to her and ran a hand down Skye's back. She looked over and saw Nattie and Wanda start to move towards them while Pietro and Trip appeared to be body-surfing the waves to shore.

Suddenly, Phil repositioned his hands so that he was holding her waist and lifted her above his head. Skye squealed and swung her legs in mid-air. Phil lowered her back down before carefully tossing her up and catching her.

Skye shrieked with laughter, "Again!"

Phil tossed her up into the air again and again until he asked her if she wanted to try something else. She nodded eagerly and he held her so that one arm was wrapped around her waist and the other was holding her hand, "Okay, I'll hold you up and you can try swimming around, okay?"

He must have seen the uncertainty in her face because he quickly reassured her, "Don't worry, I won't let you go. You'll be alright sweetheart."

Skye nodded and couldn't help but yelp as Phil gently lowered her into the water and it crept up her chest. He kept her stable and afloat by keeping his arms wrapped around her waist but she kicked her legs in the water and it kind of felt like she was swimming on her own.

She smiled and looked over to her sisters, "Look Wanda, I'm almost swimming!"

Wanda had Nattie on her back, piggyback style, and she smiled at her, "Good job Skye, you're a natural."

Nattie unwrapped one arm from around Wanda's neck and gave her a smile and a thumbs up.

She turned back to Phil when he said, "Want to try swimming to mommy?"

Her mom was standing only a foot or two away and Skye nodded determinedly. Her dad shifted her a little so that she wasn't bobbing up and down in the water and instead was pointed towards May. She started kicking her legs and knew that she probably wouldn't be moving as quickly if it hadn't been for Phil supporting her.

May held her arms out in front of her and when Skye got close enough, she reached her arms out and May plucked her out of Phil's hands. Her mom held her close and Skye couldn't stop smiling. She was really proud of herself. May placed a kiss to her forehead, "You did such a good job Skye!"

She felt her cheeks heat up at the praise and rested her head on May's shoulder, "Thanks mommy."

She never wanted to leave the beach.

* * *

The sun was starting to set and May could tell that it would be completely dark in an hour or two. Phil had suggested that they all take a walk down the beach and she was holding his hand while watching her children jog ahead of them. Her kids were looking for sharks teeth and pretty shells and she sighed in content. She wished that every day could be as amazing as today was.

She had taken a _lot_ of pictures today, Phil had jokingly poked fun at her for it, but she couldn't bring herself to care. She wanted to remember every moment of today for the rest of her life. She was happy, her husband was happy, and most importantly, her children were happy.

Skye walked back to them and wedged herself between her and Phil. The little girl grabbed onto both of their hands and walked between them. Skye tugged on their hands and May knew what she wanted.

A couple of weeks ago, Skye had walked between her and Phil and had been delighted to find out that they could swing her between them. Ever since then, that's all she wanted to do.

Phil glanced over to her and smiled, "One, two, three!"

May tightened her hold on Skye's hand and swung her forward. Her daughter squealed as her feet left the ground and she was swung forward.

Skye landed back on the ground, laughed, and tugged on their hands again. May chuckled and they made their way down the beach, periodically swinging Skye between them and watching the sun start to set.

They all turned around and started making their way back towards their things. They got back to their blanket and chairs just as the sun touched the coastline. She made her way to the water and let the waves brush over her toes as she watched the sky change colors.

She felt a tug on her hand and looked down to see Skye making grabby hands at her. She lifted the little girl up and set her on her hip. Someone stepped up next her and she looked over to see the rest of her children stand beside her. They all looked at the setting sun and after a couple more seconds, Phil joined them.

By the time the sun set, Skye was limp in her arms and she could tell that the little girl had fallen asleep. She turned back towards their things and said, "Okay guys, time to go."

Everyone groaned but went to pack everything up.

She kept Skye cradled close to her and tried to help as much as she could without waking her daughter. The sun and excitement of the day must have tuckered her out because it was still an hour or two before her bedtime.

They packed up the car and May gently placed Skye into her booster seat and buckled her in.

On the way home, she looked through her phone's photo gallery. Phil was driving and all of her children were asleep. She looked back to observe them. Skye was leaning into Natasha, whose head was resting against the seatback. Trip's head was resting on his shoulder at an uncomfortable angle and she knew that his neck would probably be aching later. In the very back of the car, Wanda was turned in her seat so that her back was resting against the window and her feet were resting in Pietro's lap. Pietro was hilariously slumped over in his seat and May didn't even know how he ended up in that uncomfortable looking position.

She chuckled and turned back around. Her bare feet were resting against the dashboard and she ignored the disapproving glances Phil was throwing her way.

She looked through her photos of today and laughed at one of Skye and Natasha burying Pietro's body in the sand.

She fondly looked at the picture of Skye and Trip running towards a cluster of birds and smiled at the photo of Natasha and Wanda smiling at the camera and hugging each other tightly.

She looked through all her pictures and paused on the last one. She didn't take this one, Phil must have.

It was beautiful and she felt her breath catch in her throat as she stared at it.

It was a picture of her and all her children staring at the setting sun. The sky was a gorgeous orangey-pink color and they were all facing the sunset so she could only see their backs. Since the only source of light was in front of them, the picture mostly just showed their silhouettes. Skye was in her arms with her head leaning on May's shoulder. Pietro was to her right and he had an elbow resting on Natasha's shoulder and was leaning into her. On May's other side, Wanda and Trip were looking at the sunset and standing close to each other.

She studied the picture and smiled softly at it. She was glad that Phil had captured this moment so that she could hang onto it forever.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I live in Florida and based the beach in this story off the beaches at home! I live right on the coastline and the sand is soft and we don't have lifeguards or anything. My best friend regularly visits her family in New England and tells me that the beaches up there are more rocky and less sandy so I'm sorry if this beach sounds a little weird to you!

Let me know how you guys are liking these one-shots! Reviews are my favorite things ever :) Which one-shot has been your favorite so far? If you have a prompt or something please don't hesitate to send it in! Also, I _may_ be planning out a sequel to 'You Can Trust Me' *inconspicuous wink* and I'll keep you all posted. I barely have a concept for it figured out so if you have any ideas for me, please let me know and we can talk about it! :)

Thank you so, so much for reading! You're all angels xx -Ariel


	7. Skye Gets in a Car Accident

**Hey guys! This one-shot was inspired by a guest's prompt, which was: 'I know that Skye has already been through a lot but what if she got in a car accident like she did with her past foster family.' You guys like seeing the angst don't you? This one-shot got way out of hand and I'm not 100% happy with how it turned out but I hope you like it anyways! **

**Keep sending me your lovely prompts! You can do that on here or over on my tumblr page and don't forget to head over to my profile and check out the poll. You guys can vote for which one-shot you would like to see me write out next :)**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye had thought that the idea of being in a car with someone other than her mom and dad would be terrifying and she had been right… at first.

The first time that she had gone home with Jemma, she had been absolutely petrified. Neither May or Phil had been able to leave work and pick her up from school so Jemma's mom had kindly offered to take her home with them. She tried to be brave in front of her friend and it had helped that May had told Jemma's mom that she liked listening to Disney music in the car, but she had still been afraid. She really didn't have anything to be scared about, Jemma's mom was a really careful driver and drove extra cautiously when Skye was in the car. She kept that in mind the next time Jemma's mom picked her up from school and after that, she had gradually relaxed enough for them to assemble a weekly carpool.

She was fine now, sitting in the car beside Jemma, each of them in their booster seats and singing loudly to the Tangled song that was playing. She had long since felt comfortable in a car with Jemma's mom. She would _definitely_ rather be with May and Phil but if someone else had to drive her somewhere, she was happy that it was Jemma's mom.

The song ended and Jemma turned to her, "We should do our vocabulary homework right when we get home so that we can help each other."

Skye nodded enthusiastically because Jemma was super smart and if they both worked together on their homework, it would get done twice as fast as it normally would. She glanced out the window and saw that they were nearly to Jemma's house and turned back to her friend, "Okay, we should see if your mom can take us to the castle playground! Maybe Ward will be there!"

Jemma opened her mouth to say something but was cut off by a loud screeching noise. The sound pierced her ears and she barely had time to look up before she was violently jerked to the side. She felt the wind get knocked out of her and heard a crashing noise and the tinkling of shattering glass.

She felt her seat belt stop her from falling forward but the belt was really tight and hurt where it was pressed against her body. Her arms and legs were flailing all over the place and she thought she felt the car roll over before it teetered from side to side and landed right side up. It was over before she even had time to scream.

She blinked a couple of times, groaned, and raised a hand to her head. It _really_ hurt.

She touched her forehead and winced when she felt a sharp pain burst through her skull at the contact. She pulled her hand away and looked at it. There was blood on her fingers.

Her breathing started to pick up and she felt her chest heave up and down. Not again, please not again.

She ignored her aching body and desperately looked towards the front seat. Jemma's mom was slumped over the steering wheel and Skye felt tears well up in her eyes.

It was just like before, it was just like before.

She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block out the images of the Harvey's. She forced herself to push aside the images of broken bones and heads twisted at unnatural angles and opened her eyes back up.

This wasn't the same thing.

She wouldn't let this be like the last time.

She heard a cough to her left and looked over. Jemma was holding a hand to her head and was looking around, "Skye?"

She felt relief flood through her. Jemma was alright, "Jemma! Are you okay?"

Jemma looked at her and started crying, "My head hurts!"

Her eyes started burning with unshed tears but she forced herself not to cry. Jemma was scared and she needed to help her, "It's okay Jemma."

Her friend started shaking her head, "My head hurts really bad! Where's my mom?"

She tried to unbuckle her stupid seat belt but she had trouble doing that on a normal day, let alone when she had just been in an accident. She forced that thought out of her mind, she didn't want to think about car accidents, she just wanted to make sure everyone was okay.

She gave up on trying to unbuckle herself and held out a hand towards her friend. She didn't notice that it was the hand that still had blood all over it, "It's okay Jemma."

Jemma wasn't listening to her. She was staring at the front seat and crying hysterically. She had seen her unconscious mom.

She grabbed onto her friends hand and heard Jemma start yelling, "Mommy! Mommy, wake up! Please!"

It sounded so similar to what she had said to the Harvey's that it made her feel nauseous.

Jemma's mom wasn't answering her but Skye saw her fingers twitch and when she looked closer, she could see her chest moving up and down with each breath she took.

The relief she felt was enough to make tears start to fall down her cheeks. She raised her other hand and went to point at Jemma's mom and cried out when burning pain radiated up her arm. Her wrist _really_ hurt.

She cradled her injured wrist to her chest, tried to forget about the pain, and squeezed Jemma's fingers with her other hand, "Your mom's okay Jemma, look! She's breathing!"

Her friend was still hysterical, "Why isn't she answering me?"

She was about to answer when someone banged on Jemma's window. Her friend screamed and Skye felt her heart start to beat faster than it already was. She saw a woman wearing a firefighter uniform standing outside Jemma's window.

The lady shouted to them, "Are you okay?"

Skye thought that that was a dumb question. Did it _look_ like they were okay?

Regardless of the stupidity of the question, Skye nodded.

The lady nodded at her, "Okay, you two are very brave. I'm going to open your door alright?"

Jemma was still crying and Skye could hear her try to catch her breath. She ignored the firefighter and focused on her friend, "Jemma, look at me!"

Her friend turned her head and stared at her. Skye smiled at her encouragingly, "Good, remember how I catch my breath when I have a panic attack?"

Jemma hiccupped and nodded. She squeezed her friend's hand, "Let's do that okay?"

Jemma nodded again and she tried to make her voice sound like May's did when her mom was comforting her, "Breathe in… and breathe out. Breathe in… and breathe out."

Skye made sure that Jemma was trying to match their breathing and after a minute, Jemma was able to catch her breath. Her friend sucked down air and calmed down a little bit.

Suddenly, Jemma's door was yanked open and her friend screamed again. The firefighter lady was reaching in towards Jemma and Skye could see another firefighter trying to open the front door so that they could get to Jemma's mom. She let go of Jemma's hand and held it protectively in front of her friend, "Don't touch her!"

The lady held up her hands and looked over to her, "I'm here to help you guys okay? My name's Ellie, what's your name?"

Skye gave her a mistrustful look but answered her anyways, "I'm Skye."

Jemma looked over to the firefighter, "Where's my mommy? Is my mommy okay?"

The lady turned her head and looked at Jemma, "We're going to take good care of your mommy okay sweetheart? Is it okay if I get you out of the car?"

Before Jemma could answer, Skye heard her own car door being wrenched open. She turned her head and saw a different firefighter reaching for her. She yelped and held up her uninjured hand, "Don't touch me!"

The man paused, "Are you okay?"

Skye didn't know if she trusted him. She didn't want to be here right now. She wanted her mom and dad and when she looked back towards Jemma, Ellie was carefully lifting her out of her booster seat. Without Jemma to distract her, she felt the reality of the situation start to sink in.

She had been in a car accident. Another one.

Her parents weren't here and her body hurt and images of the Harvey's started to creep into her mind and she felt warm tears trickle down her cheeks. She wanted to go home.

She felt something in her crack and she started sobbing. The ache in her head intensified as she cried and desperately tried to pull air into her lungs.

She saw a hand start to reach towards her again and flinched back, "I want my mommy and daddy!"

She looked up at the man when she felt her seatbelt give way. He had unbuckled her and instead of reaching for her again, he held up his hands in a placating manner, "Where are your mommy and daddy? What's your name?"

She hiccupped and gave up on trying to quiet her tears. It wasn't working anyway, "T-they're work-king."

The firefighter stayed still and asked her again, "If you tell me your name, we can call your mommy and daddy and they can come and get you."

His voice was soothing and she focused on it, "Skye Coulson. My daddy's a doctor and my mommy's a physical therapist."

The man turned and said something before looking back to her, "Wow, they sound really important! Are they good at what they do?"

Skye sniffled, "Yeah, they're the best at everything."

The man chuckled, "I can't wait to meet them. Is it okay if I get you out of here now?"

Skye really wanted to see her mom and dad and logically she knew that she had to get _out_ of the car to do that… she just didn't know what to do and she didn't know this man and she was scared.

She rubbed her eyes and looked towards the front of the car where she heard voices talking. People were taking Jemma's mom out of the car and laying her on a flat board.

She didn't want to be left alone so she turned back to the man and nodded.

He slowly reached towards her and gently pulled her out of her booster seat. She whimpered when he jostled her injured wrist and he apologized, "Can you tell me what hurts?"

He started walking towards an ambulance and Skye saw Jemma's mom jerk awake. She was looking around wildly and the people around her were trying to calm her down. She stared at Jemma's mom and said, "Is she going to be okay?"

The man kept walking towards the ambulance which put more distance between her and Jemma's mom, "We'll take good care of her."

She looked around and couldn't find Jemma. She felt really alone. She started crying a little harder, "Where's J-Jemma? Is she okay? I want my mommy and daddy!"

The man gently shushed her and started talking again but she ignored him. She wanted her parents and her brothers and sisters. She wanted Jemma and her mom to be okay and she didn't want to be here right now.

The man placed her on a cot in an ambulance and said something to the person waiting for them. She wrapped her uninjured arm around her body and curled into herself, "I want my mommy and daddy! Where are they? Can you get them? Please, can you get them for me?"

She was still crying and she wasn't even talking to anyone in particular. She didn't care who did it, she just wanted _someone_ to get her mom and dad for her.

Through her tears, the face of the fireman obstructed her view of anything else, "Skye, take a deep breath."

She hadn't realized that her breathing was so erratic until he mentioned it. She sucked in a breath and it got caught in her throat. She sniffled and tried to do the exercises that Jay had taught her and she had done with Jemma minutes before.

She slowly calmed down a little and focused on the fireman, "Are they h-here yet?"

He gave her a sympathetic look and said, "They'll meet you at the hospital okay? Why don't you lie down and let Joe check you over and we'll be there in no time."

Skye hiccupped and looked at Joe, who was hanging back a little bit. He smiled at her and she didn't say anything as he stepped forward and shone a light in her eyes.

She continued to cry as he checked over the cut on her forehead. He put some gauze and tape over it and reached for her injured arm but she held it protectively against her chest and he moved on to check over some scrapes on her legs.

The ambulance stopped and she obediently let Joe strap her to the gurney so that they could take her out of the ambulance and into the hospital. She looked up as people surrounded her, "Are my mommy and daddy here?"

A nice looking nurse smiled down at her, "They'll be here soon sweetie."

Someone else said something to the nurse and she looked away from Skye.

There was too much going on around her. It was loud and her body hurt all over and she just wanted her parents.

They stopped and she really wanted to sit up and see what was going on but she couldn't because she was strapped to the stupid bed. A man leaned over her and smiled at her, "Hi Skye, I'm your doctor, Remy. We're going to take you into a room and give you a CT scan and see if there's anything hurt in your body."

Skye didn't know what a CT scan was and she sniffled, "How does it know if I'm hurt?"

"Well, it takes a picture of the inside of your body. We can see your bones and all your organs and from that, we can see if anything is hurt. We're just waiting for the room to be ready and then we'll head in there okay?"

The thought of a machine that could take a picture of her insides was intriguing but she immediately forgot about that when she wiggled around and accidently jostled her wrist. She winced, "My wrist hurts."

He nodded, "We'll fix that up, I promise. You'll be good as-"

He was cut off by a commotion down the hall.

"Where is she? She was supposed to be here by now!"

Skye knew that voice. She tried to sit up but couldn't and she started crying harder out of frustration, "Daddy!"

She heard footsteps running towards her.

"Skye!"

She sobbed harder, "Mommy!"

She saw Remy and another nurse get pushed out of the way and _finally_ she saw her parents standing over her. May reached forward and looked like she was going to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes but thought better of it when she saw the cut on her forehead. She leaned down and kissed Skye's cheek instead and Phil grabbed onto her uninjured hand, "Skye, are you okay?"

They both looked really worried and Skye felt so relieved that they were here with her. She couldn't stop crying and her throat wasn't working right so she couldn't answer. She wanted to hug them but she couldn't when she was strapped to this dumb bed. She started wiggling around and Phil put gentle hands on her shoulders, "Stay still sweetie, just until we know you're okay."

Skye stopped moving but couldn't stop crying. May was hovering over her and her hands were fluttering around. It wasn't often that Skye saw her mom out of her element and she didn't like it.

Remy returned to her line of sight, "You're Skye's parents?"

May ignored him but Phil turned and nodded. Her doctor continued talking, "We're going to take her in and give her a CT scan. She complained about wrist pain so we'll check that out too. There's a cut on her forehead that might require stitching and bruises where her seatbelt kept her from flying out of her seat. The medic didn't see signs of a concussion but I'll double check. I think Skye will be alright after some cleaning up."

Remy smiled down kindly at her and she felt her tears start to slow down. Phil said something but she didn't hear because May leaned down and kissed the top of her head, her chin, the tip of her nose, before saying, "We were so worried baby. You're going to be okay."

May sounded like she was trying to reassure herself as much as she was trying to reassure her.

She let her parents comfort her and finally stopped crying. She blinked up at them and sniffled, "Jemma and her mom are okay, right?"

The kind looking nurse's face popped into view and she smiled at her, "The people who came in with you are going to be fine sweetie."

Skye let out a breath and nodded. She felt relief flood through her and tried to turn her head to look at Remy when he said, "Room's ready, let's head in."

She felt her bed start to move and she gripped onto Phil's hand tighter. They tried to walk into the room with her but her parents were stopped, "Sorry, but you'll have to wait out here. No one can be in the room while Skye's getting scanned."

She started to panic. She didn't want to be alone, "No! Mommy, daddy, don't leave me! Please!"

She gripped Phil's hand tighter and stared up at May. Her mom gave her a pained look, "We'll be right here baby, we aren't leaving you. It'll only take a minute or two and then we can be back together."

If she could have shaken her head, she would have. She felt tears start to roll down her cheeks again, "I don't want to be alone."

Phil's face came into view and he leaned in so that his and May's faces were all that she could see. He gave her a comforting look, "You're being so brave Skye, we're so proud of you. Could you be brave for a little longer sweetheart?"

She stared at their faces and reluctantly whispered, "Okay."

May kissed the tip of her nose again, "That's our brave, sweet girl."

Phil squeezed her hand, "We'll be right here okay? You'll be fine Skye, I promise."

Her bed started moving again and this time she had to let go of Phil's hand as they wheeled her into a room with a funny looking machine. Remy leaned over her, "Okay Skye, we're going to put you under this machine and it's going to scan over your whole body alright? It's very important that you stay as still as you can."

Skye sniffled and felt tears continue to fall from her eyes, "How long 'til I can see my mommy and daddy again?"

Remy put a hand on her shoulder and nodded at someone. She felt the straps that were holding her to the gurney loosen but Remy's hand kept her from sitting up. He smiled at her, "If you're very still, it'll be over in a couple of minutes."

She didn't say anything and Remy glanced at someone and looked back down at her, "We're going to lift you up and place you over there okay? One, two, three."

She felt hands support her head and neck and another pair of hands lift her body and place it on another hard table. Remy leaned over her again, "Very good. We'll have to leave the room but we can hear you so if you need _anything_ , just say so and we'll hear you. Now, what do you have to do while you're in here?"

Skye sniffled and her voice was a little hoarse from crying but she said, "Be really still."

Remy smiled at her, "Good girl. You're being so brave. I'm very proud of you and I know your parents are too."

She sniffled again and didn't say anything. His words didn't do anything to stop the constant flow of tears leaking down her cheeks and onto her hair. Remy brushed his thumb over her cheek and smiled comfortingly at her, "Stay still and this will be over before you know it."

He smiled at her one last time and left her line of sight. She heard the door close and after a couple of seconds, she heard his voice again, "Skye, the machine is going to start moving but don't be afraid alright? Everything's okay."

Suddenly the machine started whirring and moved a little bit. She saw it start to move over her head and shut her eyes. She didn't like it.

She told herself to stay still because if she did, she could see her parents real soon.

She blocked out the sound of the machine moving above her and kept her eyes closed. She hummed a Tangled song and waited.

It felt like it was taking forever.

Finally she heard the machine stop and after a minute or two, she heard Remy's voice again, "Everything looks okay Skye except for that wrist of yours. It looks like it's fractured so we'll be putting a cast on that. I'm going to come in there and we can go see your mommy and daddy okay?"

"Okay." She stayed still because she wasn't sure if it was alright to sit up now.

The door opened and she turned her head to look at Remy. He smiled at her, "Everything looks alright sweetie, no concussion or anything, so you're allowed to move around. You were very lucky. Let's go see your parents and then we'll head into an exam room and get you all cleaned up, okay?"

She nodded and he helped her move back over to her moving gurney. He rolled them out of the room and Skye saw her parents rush towards her.

She didn't know when she had stopped crying but seeing her parents made her start up again.

She kept her injured wrist close to her chest but threw her other arm around Phil and tried to latch herself onto him. She felt May reach over and rub her back and she buried her face into the crook of Phil's neck. She ignored the flare of pain that flashed through her as her cut made contact with his neck.

She took a deep breath and listened as her parents whispered soothing words. She heard Remy tell them what he had told her, about her fractured wrist and the stitches that she would need on her forehead, but she tried to block out his voice.

She stayed pressed against Phil and turned her head so that it was resting against his shoulder and not pressed against his neck, "I was in another car accident."

May continued to rub comforting circles on her back and leaned in so that Skye could clearly see her face, "I know baby."

She sniffled, "It was really scary."

Phil placed a kiss to the top of her head, "I'm sorry sweetheart."

"I thought that we were going to die, like the Harvey's." Her voice broke as she said her past family's name and she turned her head and pressed it back against her dad's neck.

Her parents both made soothing noises and she felt Phil sit on her bed and pull her into his lap. The bed started moving but she didn't look up to see where they were going.

She snuggled close to Phil and made sure she didn't jostle her hurt wrist. She felt much better with her parents here with her.

They stopped moving and Phil gently prodded her to sit up. She did and saw that Remy was bringing over a tray with some scary looking tools on it.

She leaned heavily into Phil and Remy gave her a comforting look, "I'm going to clean up your forehead and stitch it up alright? I'll give you a little shot so that you won't feel any pain."

Skye didn't like the idea of getting a shot, especially one on her forehead.

She watched as Remy reached forward and gently took the gauze off of her forehead. He gingerly cleaned her forehead and she tried not to wince as tiny shockwaves of pain spread through her head.

He looked at her, "Ready?"

She shook her head. She didn't want to get a shot or to get stitches, she really just wanted to go home and take a nap.

May held onto her uninjured hand, "Look at me Skye, you won't even notice anything. It'll be over before you know it."

She looked at her mom and studied her face.

May smiled at her and even though she still looked worried, it was a genuine smile. Skye didn't see Remy lean towards her but she felt the telltale sting of a shot as he poked her forehead.

She whimpered and before she could jerk away, Remy was pulling back and smiling at her, "Good job Skye. While that starts to work, how about we pick out a color for your cast?"

She watched him pull out a bunch of colors and stared at them. He grinned at her, "You'll have to wear a cast for a little while so think really hard about which color you want."

She studied the different colors and heard Phil say, "How long?"

"It's a fairly simple fracture so she'll only need to wear a half-cast for about three or four weeks. You'll have to bring her in for a check-up in a week so that we can see if everything's healing nicely but it's a clean crack so I don't think there will be any complications."

Skye looked up to May, "I don't know which color I want mommy."

Her mom leaned forward and considered all the options and pointed, "That's a pretty purple."

Skye looked at the dark-ish lavender color and nodded, "Okay, I want that one."

Remy smiled at her and nodded, "Okay, I'll have a nurse get everything ready and we'll fix that wrist up as soon as we stitch up this cut."

Skye nodded and sat on Phil's lap as her doctor stitched up her head and put a cast on her wrist. The cast felt funny and she didn't think that it would be very fun to have it on there for a month.

She started to lean heavily into Phil as Remy went over some things with her parents. She was _really_ tired. Her body still ached from being tossed around but her wrist felt a little better and her head didn't hurt as much.

She felt her eyes start to close on their own accord and sleep overtook her.

* * *

She woke up in her bed at home.

She blinked and reached up to rub her eyes and accidently hit her cheek with her cast. She had forgotten that it was there.

She sat up and saw that her parents were both slumped over in their chairs by her bed. May had a firm grip on her uninjured hand and Phil's head was resting by her knee.

She shifted pushed her blankets off of her. She gasped when she saw her legs.

There were bruises on her thighs and shins and her shoulder was a little achey. When she tugged down her shirt sleeve, she saw that there was a bruise from where her seatbelt had kept her safely in her seat.

She felt tears well up in her eyes when she remembered the accident.

It had been so similar to what had happened to the Harvey's.

It was so scary.

She carefully crawled down her bed, untangled her hand from May's, and poked her sleeping face, "Mommy?"

Her mom jerked awake with a gasp and looked around. She focused on her and reached towards her. Skye eagerly lifted her arms and let May bring her into her lap.

She cuddled close to her mom, "I was scared."

May ran her fingers through Skye's hair and the familiar action comforted her, "I know baby."

She hugged her body close to May's, "What happened?"

Her mom continued to run her fingers through her hair and it helped her slowly relax, "Someone didn't see the stop sign and ran through it. It was a stupid accident but it w _as_ just an accident. Everyone's alright."

She knew that accidents happened but she couldn't help but feel a little angry at the person who had hit them. It had been really scary and she and her friend had been hurt.

She let out a breath, "Jemma's okay?"

Skye felt May nod against her, "She's alright. She had a concussion so she had to stay at the hospital with her mom but she'll be okay."

She sighed in relief, "I don't like accidents."

"I know baby, I know."

* * *

What'd you guys think? I love hearing what you have to say :)

If you have an idea or a prompt that you would like to see in this collection, please send it in! I'll write it down, add it to the poll, and write it out!

Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, and reviews this collection. You're all so lovely and kind to me :) xx -Ariel


	8. Skye Gets in a Car Accident Part 2

**Hey guys! A lot of people have been messaging me and asking for a continuation for the last chapter so here it is! I'd like to give a very special thank you to quinnovative! Thank you so much for sharing your experience with me and for giving me some amazing insight into how concussions work. You're a beautiful gem!**

 **Also! You guys are sending in some a _mazing_ prompts and I love all of them but before you send them in, maybe you could check out the poll and see if someone else has already suggested it? I _promise_ I write down all of your prompts and have a list of them and I _will_ get to all of them eventually! I have about fifty waiting to be written out right now so please don't think I'm ignoring yours! You all have such wonderful ideas and I will write all of them out :)**

 **The next most voted for prompt was Skye's first Christmas with the Coulson's so I'll make the next chapter a happy one! Thank you for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye had latched onto May for the rest of the night and the older woman had eventually lied down on her bed and whispered enough soothing words for Skye to fall back asleep.

It wasn't a very restful sleep. She couldn't remember her exact dreams but she knew that they weren't very pleasant. When she woke up, she still felt really tired and she was still cuddled close to her mom.

She blinked a couple of times and pressed her face closer against May's neck. She inhaled her mom's flowery scent and it helped make the aftereffects of her nightmares slowly disappear. She reached up and grabbed onto her moon pendant and the warm metal felt familiar between her fingertips.

She took a deep breath and slowly turned around in May's arms, moving slowly so that she didn't wake her mom up. When she turned around completely, she saw that Phil was awake and watching them.

She glanced at the window and saw that it was still semi-dark outside. The sun was slowly starting to peek through the trees and was providing enough visibility for her to be able to see Phil's face.

He looked way less worried than he did yesterday but she could still see the concern on his face. There were little wrinkles on his forehead where it was scrunched up and instead of smiling, his mouth was a straight line. When she caught his eye, his whole expression changed. His worry seemed to disappear and he smiled at her. He leaned in, "Why don't we let mommy sleep okay? She was up pretty late last night."

Skye nodded, wiggled her way out of May's grasp, and raised her arms to Phil. She caught sight of her cast and frowned at it. She didn't like it. It was bulky and uncomfortable and a constant reminder of her accident.

She tore her gaze away from her cast when Phil gently lifted her from the bed and onto his lap. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and she tried to ignore the way her body ached when she settled against him.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and was surprised at how much heavier her right arm felt compared to her left one. Stupid cast.

She didn't really remember leaving the hospital or arriving home, she must have slept through that, and didn't know when someone changed her out of her clothes and into some pajamas. She shook that off and focused on how warm her dad was instead.

They stayed silent for a little while before Phil whispered, "How about a shower? You fell asleep before you could take one last night."

Skye nodded and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head before setting her on the ground, "Why don't you go turn the shower on and I'll grab you a change of clothes. Don't get in it though, we need to wrap up your cast."

She nodded again and made her way down the hall and into the bathroom. She leaned in to turn the water on and stepped up onto her little stepstool so that she could see her reflection in the mirror.

There was a bandage over the stitches on her forehead. It was a weird looking bandage and when she gently brushed her fingers over it, it felt more like plastic than a bandaid. She could see bruises peeking out of the collar of her pajama shirt and knew that those bruises were from her seatbelt.

Phil walked in with some clothes, a plastic bag, some tape, and a smile. He studied her for a second before setting everything down, crouching in front of her, and turning her so that they were face to face, "Your doctor said he put a waterproof bandage over your stitches and that we should try not to get them wet for forty-eight hours so I think it might be best to wash your hair over the sink. Plus, we've got to wrap up your cast so that it doesn't get wet."

Getting clean was going to be way harder than she thought.

He saw the expression on her face and smiled, "Don't worry, we can do this."

It didn't take as long as she thought it would.

Phil pulled up a stool and she leaned over the sink so that he could gently wash her hair. It was a little uncomfortable but it wasn't that bad. He ran a wet washcloth over her face, avoiding her bandage, and wrapped up her cast. He instructed her not to get her face wet in the shower and to just rinse her body off. She did as she was told and held her cast out of the shower so that Phil could support it for her while she washed herself with one arm. It was difficult but not impossible.

The worst part about showering was seeing the state that her body was in.

She had bruises on her shoulders, chest, and waist where her seatbelt had securely kept her strapped into her seat. They weren't terrible but they were pretty tender. She had some bruises scattered over her thighs and some scrapes on her shins and calves. That, combined with the stitches on her forehead and the cast on her arm was enough to make her never want to get into a car again.

She finished her shower and stepped out and into the towel Phil was holding open for her. He was extra careful with drying her off, he made sure not to put any pressure on her bruises, and helped her get dressed after taking the plastic that was covering her cast off. He had to stretch her right shirt sleeve a little so that it would go over her cast.

She turned around so that he could comb her hair and when he was finished, she looked up at him. She didn't know why, but everything seemed to catch up to her. Maybe it was seeing all of the bruises covering her body or maybe it was how gentle Phil was being compared to how violent the accident was yesterday, but whatever triggered her tears, she couldn't stop them.

Phil kneeled down on the floor and pulled her against his chest. She put her arms around him and he rubbed a soothing hand over her back and let her get tears all over his shirt.

She wasn't sure what she was feeling, maybe a mixture of scared, angry, and shaken. She would have to ask Jay what the word was for all those feelings combined because Jay always knew how to help her figure out what she was feeling.

Her tears gradually slowed down and then stopped. Phil leaned back a little and ran his thumbs over her cheeks, "Better?"

She nodded.

He leaned in to kiss her forehead, "It's okay sweetheart, it was an accident. No one was hurt and you're okay, it's not like the last time."

She nodded again and hugged herself close to him. He gently wrapped his arms around her and whispered soothing words, "You're okay sweetie, you're okay."

After a couple of minutes, she leaned back and looked up at him, "Is it okay if I just go in the car with you and mommy from now on?"

Phil breathed out a little laugh, "Yes, I think that that will be perfectly alright."

She gave him a wobbly smile and he stood up. She grabbed his hand and he smiled back at her, "Let's go make some breakfast."

"Okay."

They made their way out of the bathroom and down the hall. Before she reached the staircase, she paused and looked up at her dad, "I forgot Alice. Can I go get her?"

Phil nodded, "I'll go get everything ready."

She untangled their hands and made her way back to her room. She tiptoed into her room and found Alice in the dollhouse where she had left her the morning before.

She glanced at her bed and saw that her mom was still sleeping peacefully. She made her way over to the bed and pulled her sheets up and over her mom so that they were covering her completely. Leaning in, she gave her mom a kiss on the cheek and whispered, "I love you."

She made sure she was quiet as she exited her room and softly shut the door. As she walked down the hallway, she stopped in front of her sister's door. It wasn't closed all the way and she couldn't resist peeking into the room. She hadn't seen her sister since breakfast the previous morning and she missed her.

She opened up the door, taking a second to admire the familiar frigid landscape painted on the outside of it, and stepped inside.

It was still semi-dark in the room but because of the sun, she was able to see Nattie's sleeping form lying haphazardly on her bed. She tiptoed towards her sister and climbed onto her bed. She sat down by Natasha, set Alice onto a vacant pillow, and studied her.

Nattie was lying on her side facing her. Both arms were tucked under her pillow and one leg was under her covers while the other was blanket-free and stretched across the bed. Her face was relaxed and Skye thought that she looked really peaceful while she was sleeping.

She reached forward and gently pushed some hair out of Nattie's face and paused when her sister started to stir. She didn't mean to wake her up.

Nattie slowly opened her eyes and when they focused on her, she quickly sat up, "Skye!"

She gave Nattie a small smile and waved. She kept forgetting about her dumb cast and accidently waved with that arm instead of her other one. Her sister zeroed in on her purple cast.

Nattie quickly rubbed her eyes and then reached an arm out to caress Skye's face, moving her gaze from Skye's cast to the bandage covering the cut on her forehead "God, that looks… it looks terrible. Does it hurt?"

She shrugged. It didn't hurt as much as it did yesterday but it did ache when she accidently touched it or moved her forehead too much.

Nattie gave her a look and Skye smiled at her, "It doesn't hurt that much, I promise."

Her sister made a sympathetic noise and pointed to her cast, "Look at you, with your cast and your giant bandage. What else hurts?"

She pulled her cast to her chest and looked away when she said, "Just some cuts and bruises. I'm okay though."

She was still looking away when Nattie said, "I'm sorry Skye."

Jerking her head to look at her sister, she studied Nattie's face and scrunched up her nose, "Why are you sorry?"

Her sister looked guilty and Skye didn't like seeing her look so unsure of herself. Nattie ran a hand through her hair before looking her in the eyes, "I want to keep you safe but I'm not doing a very good job at it. I'm sorry маленькая звезда."

Skye was confused. She didn't know why Natasha thought that the accident was her fault. There was no way that Nattie could have known that she would have been hurt and it _definitely_ wasn't her fault, it was an accident. Her mom and dad and Jay all told her that accidents weren't anyone's fault, they were just accidents.

She reached forward and intertwined her pinky with her sister's, "It's not your fault Nattie."

Her sister still had the guilty look on her face, "I'm your big sister and I'm supposed to keep you safe and happy and look at you! You have scrapes and bruises all over your body."

Skye shook her head and climbed into Natasha's lap. She untangled their pinkies so that she could wrap both arms around Nattie's neck and give her a hug, "I _am_ safe and happy."

She heard Nattie let out a breath and finally felt her sister wrap her arms around her, "I don't like seeing you hurt."

Skye just hugged her tighter and carefully turned her head so that it was resting against her sister's shoulder and wasn't putting any pressure on her stitches, "I love you."

She felt Natasha place a kiss to the top of her head before she said, "I love you too."

They sat in silence for a couple more minutes before Skye leaned back, "Daddy's making breakfast."

Her sister grinned at her, "Let's get some before Trip wakes up."

Skye smiled and nodded. Natasha climbed out of her bed and Skye stood up, grabbed Alice, and raised her arms. Her sister grinned at her before lifting her up and setting her on her hip and walking out of the room. She wrapped her uninjured arm around Nattie's neck as they walked downstairs and into the kitchen.

Phil was making chocolate chip pancakes and looked over as they entered the kitchen, "I was wondering where you wandered off to. I can't believe you're up this early Nat."

Natasha went to stand by their dad and Skye leaned over a little bit and grinned when she saw that the pancakes he was making had chocolate chip smiley faces in them.

* * *

She didn't go to school for a couple of days and she didn't even mind. She was perfectly content to stay at home with either her mom or her dad and do absolutely nothing.

Three days after her accident, she finally got her parents to allow her to go over and see Jemma. They hadn't let her see her until now because they said they she and her mom were still healing and Jemma wasn't supposed to be around a lot of commotion due to her concussion.

Phil said that Jemma wasn't allowed to watch tv, use a computer, or write for the past couple of days because the doctors didn't want her thinking too hard. Skye knew that Jemma would not like that very much. Her friend _liked_ to think.

Her parents also said that Jemma was sleeping a lot and wasn't allowed to go to school for a whole week. She would have to go to school tomorrow and was a little sad that her best friend wouldn't be there with her.

She had finally convinced her parents to allow her to go see her friend, so she was walking next door with her mom. Her body was still kind of sore and she didn't feel like walking so she was contentedly resting in May's arm while they waited for someone to answer the doorbell.

The door opened up and Skye looked up at Jemma's mom. The older lady had some bruises on her arms and she smiled nervously at them, "Hey guys, come in."

They entered Jemma's house and Skye looked around.

The inside was really neat but bright and obviously well loved. There were pictures hanging on the walls and it smelled like fresh flowers.

She turned her attention back to the grown-ups when she heard Jemma's mom say, "How are you Skye."

She shrugged, "I'm okay. I have to go back to the doctors so that they can check my cast and my stitches though."

A pained look flashed across Jemma's mom's face but she didn't notice it. May set her down and gently patted her behind, "Why don't you go see Jemma?"

Jemma's mom straightened and pointed down a hallway, "Of course! Her room is the second one on the left."

Skye nodded and made her way down the hallway. She kept walking but paused when she heard Jemma's mom's voice again. They must not be able to see her, "I feel terrible. I barely have any scratches while our kids got the brunt of it. I'm so sorry Melinda."

She heard the rustling of clothes and her mom say, "It was an accident. Skye knows that and Phil and I know that."

She wandered down the hallway and found the second room on the left. She twisted the doorknob and peered inside, "Jemma?"

Her friend was sitting cross-legged on the middle of her bed. Her room was dim, with only the light of a lamp casting a faint glow around the room, but Skye could tell that her walls were light pink and matched her bedspread.

She made her way over to the bed and climbed onto it, "Hi."

Jemma smiled at her, "Hi."

She made herself comfortable on the bed and studied her friend. She looked tired. She tilted her head, "Are you okay?"

Her friend shrugged and it made Skye smile a little bit because that was how she had been responding every time someone asked her that, "My mommy said that you had a concussion. They told me that that means that you hurt your brain."

Jemma nodded and scooted closer to her, "Yeah, my head still hurts."

Skye gave her a sympathetic look, "They had to put stitches in my head and a cast on my wrist." She waved her injured wrist in the air so that Jemma could see and continued, "What'd they do to you?"

Her friend sighed and gave her a tired look, "I had to stay the night at the hospital and they woke me up every two hours. It was so mean."

Skye made an indignant sound, "That wasn't very nice!"

Jemma grinned at her, "That's what I said. They let me go home the next day and then I was allowed to sleep, so I slept _a lot_. I wasn't allowed to watch Spongebob or anything so it's been kind of boring."

Skye reached forward and squeezed her friends hand and Jemma kept talking, "The light hurts my eyes and my head so that's why it's so dark in here."

"I'm sorry Jemma."

Her friend studied her, "I'm sorry too. Can I sign your cast?"

She nodded and Jemma gave her instructions as to where she could find some permanent markers and she grabbed one. She settled herself back on Jemma's bed and handed her the marker before holding out her cast. Jemma uncapped the marker and concentrated on writing on her cast.

After a second or two, Jemma made a frustrated sound and Skye was surprised to see that she was crying, "What's wrong?! Are you okay?"

Jemma looked up, "I can't spell right. Look! I spelled it wrong!"

Skye pulled her cast close to her face and looked at what Jemma had written, "Feel bitter, live Jemma."

She wasn't very good with her words, but she knew that "bitter," should be "better," and "live," should be "love." She scrunched up her face because even though she wasn't very good at spelling, Jemma was and she never usually spelled words wrong.

Her friend was still crying and that was another strange thing. Jemma _never_ cried. One time, a girl in a different class had said some real mean things to Jemma and her friend hadn't even cried, she had just told the girl that she was being immature and walked away. Skye had gone up to the girl later and told her to stay away and never talk to Jemma again. She didn't know why something as small as some misspelled words would make Jemma cry but she didn't like it.

She leaned forward and hugged her friend, "It's okay, I spell words wrong all the time."

Her friend was still crying but she managed to hiccup out, "I know h-how to spe-ell these words though!"

She combed her fingers through Jemma's hair and hoped that it was as comforting to her as it was when May did it to her.

Jemma kept crying and she heard footsteps walking towards them.

The door to her friend's room opened up and Jemma's mom rushed over to them with May right behind her, "What's wrong darling?"

Jemma didn't say anything so Skye did, "She spelled something wrong and it made her feel bad. It's okay though." She tried to defend her friend's strange actions even though she didn't understand them.

Jemma's mom sat beside her and her friend leaned into her mom's side. Skye sat back and Jemma's mom turned to her, "The doctor said that she might be a little overly emotional."

Jemma's mom focused back onto her daughter and started whispering into her ear.

May walked up to her and rubbed circles onto her back. Skye leaned into the touch and waited for Jemma to feel better.

After a minute or two, Jemma's mom gave them an apologetic look, "I'm sorry but she's pretty tired. It think she's going to take a nap."

Jemma's face was still pressed against her mom's neck but she saw her nod along to what her mom was saying.

May made an understanding noise, "Of course. I hope you feel better Jemma."

Jemma turned so that they could see her face. Skye was relieved to see that she had stopped crying and was giving them a wobbly smile, "Bye."

Skye leaned in and gave Jemma a kiss on the cheek, "Bye, feel better."

Jemma nodded at her, "You too."

Jemma's mom moved to show them out but May told her they could do it themselves so that Jemma wouldn't have to be left alone.

They walked outside, pinkies intertwined, and Skye gave May a worried look, "Is Jemma going to be okay?"

May gave her a reassuring look, "She's going to be fine sweetie. Concussions and other head injuries are a little tricky but she'll be okay."

Skye thought about it and looked into her mom's face, "We'll all be okay."

May squeezed her pinky a little tighter and gave her a smile.

* * *

Let me know what you think! This chapter also got way out of hand and ended up way longer than I anticipated but I'm happy with it :) Thank you again quinnovative for being such an awesome person and for giving me such amazing insight into how concussions work!

If you have a prompt for me, please send it in (either on here or on my tumblr page)! Also, don't forget to check out the poll and cast your votes for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next. I've added quite a few new prompts to it and you're allowed to go back and vote again so don't forget to!

Thanks so much guys! You're all so lovely and I really enjoy talking to those of you who message me! And for that one guest who told me that I made her fall in love with Bucky, you made me so happy! Thank you! xx -Ariel


	9. Skye's First Christmas With Her Family

**Hey guys! BrittanaCanada and Domenic675 both sent in prompts for Skye's first Christmas with the family and it was the most-voted for prompt on the poll so I hope you guys like it! Skye deserves a happy little one-shot after those last two chapters :) I thought that since this pretty much covers the whole month of December, I would do little snippets of the days leading up to Christmas and then a big part of Skye on Christmas morning. Fair warning, it got kind of long and I wrote way more than I anticipated.**

 **Don't forget to check out the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! If you have a prompt for me, send it in (either on here or on my tumblr page) and I'll add it to the poll and write it out!**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye was eagerly wiggling around on the couch. She was waiting for Wanda, Pietro, and Phil to get back from the airport and it was taking _forever_. She had really wanted to go with her dad to pick up her siblings but they were flying in the middle of the school day and it was the last day before her winter break so she wasn't allowed to miss it.

Nattie was sitting behind her, braiding and re-braiding her hair, while they waited. Her mom was in the dining room going over some papers from work and Trip was upstairs in his room. She couldn't keep still or focus on the tv screen in front of her but Nattie didn't seem to mind too much.

The door burst open and Pietro walked in and held his hands above his head, "Don't worry, the party has arrived. Please, hold the applause."

She squealed, scrambled off the couch, and ran towards him. He grinned at her and held his arms open. She jumped at him and he easily caught her and twirled her around. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck, "I missed you!"

He laughed and hugged her tight before setting her on his hip and leaning forward to hug Natasha, "I missed you too little one."

She looked over his shoulder and saw Wanda and her dad walking through the door behind him. She reached towards her sister and wiggled around until Pietro transferred her into Wanda's arms. Wanda kissed her cheek and smiled real big at her, "Hey little monkey."

She smiled and wrapped herself around Wanda. It felt really good having her whole family together again.

She tightly hugged her sister before leaning back a little, "You guys are going to be here for a whole month right?"

Wanda gave her a reassuring smile, "A little longer than a month actually."

"Yay!"

Pietro came up beside her and gave her a disappointed look, "Skye, why are there no Christmas decorations up yet?"

She scrunched up her nose, "It was just Thanksgiving!"

Her brother shook his head sadly, "That's just not a good enough excuse. Come on little one, we need to brighten the place up."

He waved his hands at her and she leaned over so that he could grab her out of Wanda's arms. They started walking upstairs with Wanda and Nattie trialing after them. She heard Phil shout from downstairs, "You guys haven't even put away your bags yet! Guys?"

The twins laughed and continued walking up the stairs and down the hall. They stopped below the attic door and Skye gulped. The attic was scary and she had never been up there before.

Pietro set her down and looked at all of them, "You guys wait down here, I'll grab the decorations."

She sighed in relief and watched as he tugged on the string and a flight of stairs appeared. He walked up them and they all waited.

Trip poked his head out of his room and smiled at them. He walked forwards and gave Wanda a hug, "What are you guys doing?"

Nattie pointed towards where Pietro had disappeared, "He couldn't wait five minutes before deciding that the house was under-decorated and he needed to change that."

Trip turned to Wanda, "What's your guys' deal with decorations?"

Her oldest sister shrugged and smiled, "Everything looks so happy and bright at Christmas. Our mom and dad used to drive us around at night so that we could see all the Christmas lights."

Skye grabbed onto Wanda's hand and intertwined their pinkies. She didn't know if talking about Wanda's real parents would make her sad but she didn't look upset, she looked like she was thinking about a happy memory.

Wanda looked down at her, "Isn't putting decorations up fun?"

She shrugged. She had never been _that_ into Christmas. Sure, the songs were catchy and the lights were beautiful but the nuns always made them go to a really long church service and the one holiday that she had spent with a foster family, she was too young to remember. They always got a new toy though and they were allowed to hang up some ornaments on the Christmas tree so it wasn't _that_ bad, it was just hard to have a fun Christmas in an orphanage.

Wanda was about to say something when Pietro carefully climbed back down the stairs with two boxes stacked on top of each other. He jumped to the ground and grinned at them, "Let's do this."

He opened the boxes up and everyone reached in and grabbed stuff and they went _crazy_.

Wanda and Pietro were _experts_ at decorating. In under an hour, they had tinsel wrapped around the staircase, lights hanging around the bookshelf in the living room, little figurines placed all around the house, a wreath on the door, a happy-looking paper Santa hanging on the playroom door, and snow globes on every table surface.

Everything looked so bright and happy and Skye could feel excitement seeping into her.

She always tried not to get her hopes up around the holidays because she was usually let down but she had a feeling that this year would be different.

* * *

They were going to get a Christmas tree. Skye had never really understood why people put trees in their house to celebrate Christmas but she liked decorating it and it smelled good so she didn't question it out loud.

They were wandering around a tree farm and it was pretty chilly outside. She was wrapped up tight in her blue jacket and white beanie but she didn't object when Phil picked her up and cuddled her close to keep her warm.

They had been walking around for about ten minutes and no one could agree on a tree. Pietro and Trip wanted a _huge_ tree but her dad didn't think that they would be able to safely transport it home. Her sisters wanted a perfectly symmetrical, mid-sized tree and her mom didn't seem to have a preference. Skye was happy to just sit back and watch.

Some of her happiness started to fade a little bit when her family went from friendly bickering to exasperated fighting.

They were standing in front of two trees. Her brothers were pointing at the tall, thin tree and her sisters were standing in front of a fat tree that was about as tall as Phil was.

Pietro was pointing to her sisters' tree, "That doesn't say Christmas! This," He pointed to his tall tree, "say's Christmas! Look at it! Imagine how many ornaments we can fit onto this bad boy!"

Nattie crossed her arms, "That won't even fit in our living room!"

Trip tilted his head, "It'll fit."

Wanda rolled her eyes, "Barely."

Pietro stood in front of her sisters' tree and gave it a dirty look, "Our tree is better than yours."

Skye shook her head and scrunched up her nose. She just wanted everyone to be happy again.

She randomly pointed to a tree and raised her voice so that everyone could hear her, "Let's get that one!"

Everyone turned to her and then to where she was pointing. She looked over to the tree she was pointing to and tilted her head. It was a smallish tree and its branches weren't exactly _full_ , but it was cute.

May reached over and straightened Skye's beanie, "You want that one?"

She shrugged, "Yeah."

Trip gave her a look that clearly said that he thought she was a little crazy, "That sad little tree?"

She felt herself grow defensive. It wasn't a _bad_ tree and there was nothing wrong with it. She unwrapped her arms from Phil's neck and crossed them over her chest, "Yes, and it's not sad Trip."

They walked closer to her small tree and stood around it. Nattie examined it and sighed, "It's alright. It might even look good with some lights and decorations."

Skye nodded and smiled proudly. Her tree was cute.

Her brothers weren't convinced though. Pietro spoke up, "Skye, there are _loads_ of better trees around here."

She shook her head and dug her heels in, "No, what's wrong with this tree?"

Her brother waved at the tree, "It's small and crooked and there are some better trees that we can choose instead."

Skye frowned. She was small and she knew that her parents could have chosen any other kid to foster instead of her but they had chosen her and she was going to do the same thing for this sad little tree.

She shook her head vehemently, "This tree needs a home and I like it. We can give it a home, right daddy?"

Phil leaned in to kiss her cheek, "Of course we can sweetheart."

And that was how they ended up taking home the saddest, scrawniest looking tree in the whole tree farm.

They stood it up in the living room and put lights and decorations all over it. She proudly hung up the ornament that she had made in Ms. Hill's class in the direct center and Phil lifted her up so that she put the star on top of the tree.

They all stepped back and admired the tree when they were finished.

It was decorated with blue and white lights and silver tinsel. It was loaded with ornaments, some were store bought and some were handmade and had pictures or drawings on them. The star on the top was silver and had intricate designs in the center of it. You could still see some of the bare-patches where there were some missing branches but Skye thought that that just added character. She liked her tree.

She smiled and looked up at her family, "Well?"

Wanda grinned at her, "It looks great."

Her mom, dad, Nattie and Trip nodded in agreement. She turned to Pietro and gave him a questioning look. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and smiled at her, "You know what? I was wrong. This is the perfect tree for us."

She smiled back at him and turned back to her tree and admired it. She was happy that she had chosen the sad, broken little tree and she was glad that her family liked it too.

* * *

Her parents wanted her to make a list of all the things that she wanted for Christmas.

She didn't really want to do that. It just seemed kind of _wrong_ to write down a bunch of toys that she wanted when she had everything she needed right in front of her.

Skye was staring at her blank sheet of paper and her mom and dad were both sitting across from her at the table, looking at some papers for work.

She twirled her pencil around in her fingers and rested her chin in her palm. She didn't know what to write.

May looked up and saw that she wasn't writing anything, "Come on Skye, we need to send that list to Santa so that he knows what you want."

She nodded and stared more intensely at her piece of paper.

She didn't know what to write. She had Alice and Mara and all of her other doll friends. She had all the crayons and coloring books she could ask for. She had a whole playroom full of toys for her to play with and her family had built her her own playground in the backyard! She couldn't think of anything else that she needed and it was such a drastic change from last year's Christmas.

Last year, she had just wanted a family. That was all that she had wished for and Santa had given it to her, even if he had been a little late.

Now she had a family, a mommy and daddy and brothers and sisters, _and_ a whole bunch of toys. She was very happy with everything she had right now.

May was still staring at her and finally broke the silence, "Don't you know what you want for Christmas?"

She shrugged, "I have everything I want."

Both of her parents smiled at her and Phil set his paper down, "You can't think of anything for Santa to bring you?"

She shook her head and May gave Phil a look, "He'll just have to surprise you now won't he?"

Skye nodded and abandoned her seat in favor of May's lap. She grabbed her mom's hands and wrapped them around her waist, "I asked for a family last Christmas and now I have you guys."

May tightened her hold on Skye and leaned down so that she was gently resting her chin on top of Skye's head, "We are very very lucky that Santa gave you what you wanted."

Skye leaned into her mom and grinned. She couldn't agree more.

* * *

Skye's favorite part of the month was the gingerbread house contest.

She had never heard of such a thing until her mom had called everyone into the dining room and had seen five different gingerbread house kits laid out on the table.

Skye's eyes widened and she sat down at one of the chairs, "What's this?"

May smiled at her, "Every year we see who can make the best gingerbread house."

Wanda clapped her hands together, "You're looking at last year's winner."

Skye grinned and looked at the supplies in front of her. There was frosting in tubes, pieces of gingerbread that was supposed to build the structure of a house, and candy. She was excited. She had never built a gingerbread house before but it sounded fun and she wanted to win this competition.

Everyone got to work and Skye used some frosting to glue her house together. She patiently held the walls of her house together until they dried so that it wouldn't fall over. She learned how to do that when she made houses out of popsicle sticks in art class.

Apparently Trip never got that memo because the walls to his gingerbread house kept falling over.

She finished her outline of the house and started to decorate it.

She outlined a door and windows with frosting and made zigzag patterns on the roof. She placed candy on the outside of her house to make it look like a candy-garden and even frosted in a smiling gingerbread man.

She leaned back and admired her work.

She glanced up and laughed at what she saw.

Trip's walls were covered in frosting and he had given up on trying to make it a traditional house shape and instead made it look like a teepee. Nattie had forfeited halfway through and was now eating her candy and watching everyone else create their houses. Wanda's house was really pretty and Skye thought that she did a really good job with decorating it. Her oldest sister was poking fun at Pietro's house, which had smudged frosting all over it from where he had brushed against it with his arm.

She watched as her mom walked over and examined her house, "Wow Skye, you did a really good job!"

She smiled, "Thanks mommy. We make houses all the time in class."

May ran her hand over Skye's head, "It looks like it's between you and Wanda this year."

She nodded and watched May walk over and inspect Wanda's gingerbread house.

Her mom nodded seriously and made a thoughtful face before saying, "I think we have a tie!"

Skye squealed and walked over to Wanda. She climbed onto her oldest sisters lap and wrapped one arm around her neck, "I like your gingerbread house Wanda. It's really pretty."

Wanda smiled at her, "Thanks little monkey. Yours is very pretty too. How about next year we team up and make the best house ever?"

Skye nodded excitedly and eagerly took the piece of candy that Nattie was offering her.

* * *

Skye was waiting in line at the mall with Natasha, Wanda, and her mom. They all went out for some girl time to watch a movie and had seen that Santa had been in town and her mom had insisted that she get a picture with him.

She was settled safely in Nattie's arms and waiting in line with a bunch of other little kids. There were a lot of people walking around the mall right now and it was kind of scary. Her mom said that it was because people were shopping for last minute Christmas presents.

She looked over to her mom, "How come Santa is here and not at the North Pole?"

May grinned at her, "Because all of the kids need to tell him what they want for Christmas so that he knows what to bring them."

Skye pondered that, "What do I tell him? I don't know what I want."

Wanda spoke up, "Why don't you tell him you want a new doll so that Mara and Alice could have a new friend?"

Her dolls _did_ like getting new friends… "Okay."

They moved up in the line and finally they were next. Nattie set her down while May talked to the bored looking elf that was managing the line and taking the children up to see Santa. She looked up at Santa and was a little anxious. She didn't want to go up there all by herself.

Nattie reached down and intertwined their pinkies, "It'll be okay, we'll be waiting for you right here."

Skye nodded and gave her sister a grateful smile.

The elf ushered her forward and Skye looked back to May. Her mom gave her an encouraging smile so she took a deep breath and walked away from her family and towards Santa.

The elf placed her on Santa's lap and he smiled at her, "Hello, what's your name?"

Skye gave him an unconvincing look, "I know you aren't the real Santa."

Fake Santa looked surprised for a moment and Skye kept on talking, "I'm just pretending because it makes my mommy happy but I know that the real Santa is up at the North Pole making presents for us. You're just here to tell him what all us kids want for Christmas because he's too busy to do it himself."

Fake Santa chuckled, "You got me. Santa sent me here so that I could tell him what you want for Christmas so tell me, what is it that you're wishing for?"

Skye shook her head, "I don't need anything but can you tell Santa thank you for me?"

Fake Santa looked confused, "For what?"

She gave him a stern look. She didn't know Fake Santa and she didn't trust him enough to tell him that she was thanking the real Santa for giving her her family. She didn't even know where her courage to talk to this stranger was coming from, probably from the fact that he was working for Santa and she liked him, "He'll know what for, that's between me and Santa."

Fake Santa held up his hands, "You got it. What's your name so that I can tell him?"

"It's Skye."

The elf waved her hands and caught Skye's attention, "Smile for the camera."

She smiled real big and a flash momentarily blinded her. Once her vision returned to normal, she hopped off of Fake Santa's lap and turned back to him, "Don't forget alright?"

He crossed his heart, "I promise."

She nodded and made her way back to her family.

* * *

On Christmas Eve, she made cookies with her parents after dinner.

Her siblings were in the living room watching old Christmas movies and she was sitting on the counter watching May and Phil transfer the freshly bakes cookies from the hot pan to the cooling rack.

She nervously swung her legs back and forth, "Santa likes chocolate chip cookies right?"

Phil gave her a reassuring look, "Santa likes every cookie but chocolate chip is his favorite."

Skye let out a breath of relief, "Good."

She twirled a strand of her hair around her finger and looked over to her mom, "Do you think he'll know that I live here now? Last Christmas I was at the orphanage."

May walked towards her and stood between her legs. She untangled Skye's hair from around her finger and gave her a smile, "I'm sure he will baby, Santa knows everything."

She nodded absentmindedly, "Do you think I was nice enough this year?"

Both of her parents laughed and she gave them a look that told them that she wasn't joking. Her parents faces sobered and her mom kissed her forehead, "You've been a very good girl and Santa knows that."

Skye nodded again and hoped that her mom was right.

She leaned into May's chest and watched as Pietro wandered into the kitchen and reached for a cookie. She held out a hand, "Wait! Those are for Santa!"

Pietro pulled his hand back, "Santa's going to eat all of these?"

She didn't really know how much Santa ate. There were _a lot_ of cookies and she didn't think that he would be able to eat all of them by himself, "Um, I don't know. How much does Santa eat?"

Phil pulled out a plate from the cabinet and set four cookies onto it, "I think four will be good enough. We can all share the rest."

Skye nodded and Pietro grabbed a cookie before shoving the whole thing into his mouth. Skye giggled and he looked over to her, "What's so funny?" At least, that's what she _thought_ he said, his mouth was so full that his words were all muffled.

She giggled again and pointed, "You put that whole cookie in your mouth!"

Pietro chewed and swallowed before grabbing another cookie. This time he took a reasonably sized bite and grinned at her, "Come on little one, let's go watch a movie."

The offer was inviting but she shook her head, "I want to go to sleep."

Her parents and brother both gave her startled looks. May put a hand to her forehead, "Hm, no fever. Are you feeling alright?"

Skye laughed and brushed her mother's hand off of her forehead, "Yeah."

Pietro glanced at the clock, "You still have an hour 'til bedtime, you know that right?"

She nodded, "Yeah, but the faster I go to sleep, the sooner it'll be Christmas."

Her brother thought that over and shrugged. Her dad walked over and lifted her from the counter, "You can go to sleep _after_ you take a shower and brush your teeth."

She nodded eagerly and tugged on May's hand so that they could go get ready for bed.

* * *

It was hard to go to sleep, the excitement over Christmas day was enough to make sleep evasive, but she finally fell into a deep slumber.

She woke up and immediately sat up in bed. When she looked out of her window she saw that it was still really dark so she must have woken up earlier than she usually did.

She pushed her blankets off of her and ran out of her room so fast that she forgot to grab Alice and Mara from her bed.

She skipped down the hall and eagerly opened her parent's bedroom door. She peered inside and saw that there were both still sleeping.

She tiptoed over to Phil's side of the bed and stared at his sleeping face. He was lying on his side facing her and one arm was hanging off the side of the bed.

She poked his cheek, "Daddy! It's Christmas!"

He groaned and kept his eyes shut, "Too early."

She poked his cheek again, "Come on daddy, it's Christmas!"

He groaned again, "Go tell mommy." He turned his face so that it was hidden by his pillow and Skye scrunched her nose up at him.

She made her way over to her mom's side of the bed and this time she climbed onto it. May was sleeping on her back so Skye straddled her stomach and leaned over her face, "Mommy! It's Christmas."

Her mom opened up one eye and glanced at her before shutting it. Her voice was gravely when she said, "It's very early sweetie."

She huffed, "But it's C _hristmas_!" She didn't think that they understood the severity of the situation.

Her mom's eyes stayed shut and she covered her face with an arm, "Go tell daddy."

She let out a frustrated breath and climbed off of the bed. She needed reinforcements.

She wandered down the hallway and opened up Nattie's door. Both of her sisters were sleeping in Nattie's bed because Phil still hadn't put two beds into the guest room for when Wanda and Pietro were home from school. He kept saying that he was going to renovate and add some more rooms to the house but he obviously kept forgetting about it because it still hadn't happened.

She walked up to the bed and climbed onto it. She knew that Natasha didn't like waking up in the morning so she focused on Wanda instead.

She leaned over her oldest sister's face and poked her cheek, "Wanda, it's Christmas."

She poked her sister's cheek again and watched as Wanda woke up. She groaned, reached up to rub her eyes, and then opened them. They focused on Skye and Wanda gave her a sleepy smile, "Hey little monkey."

She grinned. _Finally_. Someone was listening to her.

"It's Christmas but mommy and daddy won't wake up. Will you help me?"

Wanda slowly sat up, "'Course I will."

Wanda glanced over to Natasha's sleeping form, "Maybe _you_ should wake her up. She's not very happy when I do it."

Skye smiled and crawled over to Nattie. She straddled her stomach and poked her cheek, "Nattie, wake up."

She had to poke Natasha a couple more times before the redhead let out a whimper and slowly opened her eyes, "There's no way it's morning already."

Skye sat back a little, "It's morning and it's Christmas!"

Her sister turned her head and glanced at the clock that was resting on her bedside table. She made a surprised sound and turned back to her, "Skye! It's barely five o'clock! This does _not_ count as the morning."

She shrugged and Nattie tried to close her eyes and go back to sleep but Skye wouldn't let her. She reached down and tickled Natasha's sides and her sister's eyes popped back open, "You play dirty."

Skye shrugged but felt a little guilty, "I'm sorry but mommy and daddy won't wake up."

Wanda stood up and motioned Skye forward, "Come on little monkey, we can go wake them up."

She sighed and climbed off of her sister and the bed. She took Wanda's hand and was about to walk out the door when she heard a reluctant groan, "Wait, I'm coming."

Skye smiled and squealed. They all walked down the hallway and Wanda motioned towards Trip and Pietro's room, "I'll wake up these two while you go wake up mom and dad."

Nattie quickly intertwined their pinkies and kept walking towards their mom and dad's room. The redhead leaned down and whispered, "Wanda's going to have a terrible time trying to wake those two up. We got off easy."

Skye nodded and they entered their parent's room. Phil's face was still hidden by his pillow and May had turned onto her side.

Natasha flicked on the light switch and Skye squinted at the sudden brightness. Both of her parents groaned and Nattie lifted Skye up so that she was standing on the bed, "It's super early but we're all up and waiting on you guys."

Her parents snuggled deeper into their blankets and Nattie gave her a look, "Skye, you know what to do."

She smiled and started jumping up and down on the bed, "Mommy, daddy, it's wakeup time!"

She jumped up and down until two hands snaked out from underneath the blankets and held her still. Phil pulled her forward and trapped her arms by her side, "Okay, we're up."

Skye squealed and waited for both of her parents to climb out of bed before tugging on their hands and leading them downstairs. She paused halfway down the staircase and her mouth fell open in surprise.

Her brothers and Wanda were already sitting on the couch waiting for them. They had turned on some lights and the Christmas tree was still shining brightly so Skye had plenty of light to see the _massive pile of presents sitting under the tree._

She knew that this family would be different than all her other families, that this Christmas would be different than all her other Christmas's, but this was unreal.

Her parents both tugged on her hands and she limply followed behind them to the couch. They sat down and she stayed standing and staring at the tree and all the brightly wrapped gifts underneath it.

She pointed at it, "Those… are for us?"

She heard May laugh, "Yes."

She turned to stare at her parents, "All of them?"

Phil chuckled, "Yeah."

She looked back to the tree. She had _never_ seen a tree have this many presents underneath it before.

Her siblings got up and all sat around the tree but Skye stayed where she was. May gently pushed her forward, "What are you waiting for sweetie?"

She hesitantly walked forward and sat down by Natasha. She wasn't really sure what to do in this situation.

Nattie handed her a present and she took it and set in on her lap. She looked around and saw that everyone else was opening a present. Trip had handed May a card and she was reading it and smiling while Pietro and Wanda were laughing and yanking the paper off of each other's presents. Natasha and Phil were both looking at her.

She looked down at her present and her fingers itched to tear into the prettily wrapped gift. She focused on Phil, "Can I open it?"

Phil nodded and she smiled.

She made sure to read the tag on it to see who it was from and saw that it was a gift from Santa. She ripped into the shiny wrapping paper and gasped in excitement. It was an American Girl doll that looked just like her. It had brown hair and eyes and was even wearing little black combat boots that looked like Skye's favorite pair.

She held the boxed doll close to her chest and walked over to her parents, "Look at what Santa brought me!"

She waved the doll in their faces and they both smiled at her. May reached forward to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes, "It looks like Santa knew just what to get you."

She nodded and wiggled herself in between both of her parents on the couch. They gave her confused looks but Phil wrapped an arm around her when she leaned into him.

May turned so that she was facing her, "Skye, don't you want to open the rest of your gifts?"

She raised an eyebrow hopefully, "More? I have more presents?"

Phil rubbed his hand down her arm, "Well yeah. I think Santa got you a few more things and then you have some gifts from all of us."

She started squirming excitedly in her seat, "Really?"

May laughed, "Really."

She hopped off of the couch and ran back towards the tree. Halfway there, she turned back around, "I can open them now, right?"

She needed to make sure.

Her parents laughed and nodded at her. She let out an excited laugh and sat back down by Natasha. The redhead handed her another gift and Skye tore into it.

It took them a little while to get through everyone's gifts and by the time they were finished, everyone was showing each other what they got.

May was collecting tissue paper, empty gift bags, and wrapping paper and looked around when she was done, "Is that all of them?"

Skye suddenly stood up and held out a hand, "Wait!"

She ran up to her room and grabbed what she needed before running back downstairs. She climbed onto the couch next to Phil and handed him her present before motioning May forward and handing her her gift.

Phil opened his first and smiled.

In class, they had chosen one of their favorite people and were supposed to write about why they loved them so much. She had chosen Phil and Ms. Hill had helped her write about why she loved him and had given her special glitter glue so that she could decorate it.

She anxiously waited while he read through what she had written about him. She _really_ wanted him to like it.

He looked up from her present and pulled her in for a hug, "This is amazing Skye, I love it so much. Thank you sweetheart."

She let out a relieved breath and hugged him back tightly.

She heard Natasha speak up, "What does it say?"

She pulled away from Phil and he handed his present back to her, "Why don't you read it?"

She gripped the paper and shyly read from it, "My daddy is my favorite person in the world because I love him and he loves me. He keeps me safe and gives me Spongebob bandaids when I get hurt. He taught me how to ride a bicycle and we both make breakfast together all the time and it's really fun. I love spending time with him and I'm happy that he's my daddy."

She smiled proudly and knew that all the words were spelled right because Ms. Hill had helped her.

Phil pulled her in for another hug and took his present back from her and held it gingerly to his chest. She was really happy that he liked it.

She turned to her mom when she heard her say, "Is it my turn?"

Skye nodded and crawled over to where May had sat down on the other end of the couch. She climbed into her mom's lap and May opened her gift in front of them.

She opened the tiny jewelry box and nervously waited for May to say something. She was quiet for a couple of seconds so Skye started to ramble anxiously, "Daddy helped me pick it out, it's okay if you don't-"

May cut her off, "No! No, I love it. It's beautiful and perfect and I love it."

Skye smiled brightly and let out a sigh of relief. She stared down at the pretty silver locket and saw May's fingers brush over the intricate rose design on the front. Her mom opened up the locket and Skye leaned forward so that she could point to the pictures inside, "That's a picture of me and you and that's a picture of me and daddy so that we'll both be with you wherever you go."

It had taken a while to find the right pictures and fix them so that they were small enough to fit into the small locket but Skye thought that they turned out very nicely. The picture of her and May was one that Phil had randomly taken of the two of them. Skye's front tooth was missing and she and her mom's faces were pressed closely together and they were both smiling. The picture of her and Phil had been the one where he was wearing a tiara and she was wearing her Captain America outfit. They were both making silly faces, he was sticking out his tongue and she was crossing her eyes, and Skye really liked that picture.

She looked to see May's reaction and saw that her mom's eyes looked watery.

She turned around in May's lap and put a hand on her cheek. May shook her head and laughed, "I love it sweetie, thank you. Can you put it on me?"

Skye nodded and clasped the necklace around May's neck before both of them admired it. Skye tilted her head and smiled, "I like it on you."

May leaned in and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "Me too."

Everyone else came over and admired May's new piece of jewelry and they all thanked each other for the gifts that were given and received.

She felt happy. Actually she felt _more_ than happy and it wasn't just because of the presents, it was because her whole family was here together and everyone was content to just sit by one another and laugh and enjoy each other's company. It was great and Skye wanted this to last forever.

Phil stood up and clapped his hands, "Chocolate chip pancakes?"

Everyone else stood up quickly and Skye nodded eagerly, "Yes!"

Her dad laughed, "Let's go."

* * *

What'd you guys think? It was hard to fit in all the various Christmas activities into one chapter but I think that a majority of them are in there.

If you have a prompt that you'd like to send in, you can do that either on here or on my tumblr page and I'll add it to the poll and then write it out! Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who takes the time to leave a review. You're all beautiful angels and I really appreciate it :) xx -Ariel


	10. Skye Has a Crush on Bucky

**Sooooo someone in the comments wanted to see a sequel where Skye is all grown up and falls for Bucky and because the age difference is waaayy off and it would be a little weird for that relationship to establish itself in _this_ universe, I decided to do a cute one-shot (it's more like a drabble, it's very short) instead of a whole sequel. The thought of Skye and Bucky being in a relationship together is super appealing and I ship is very hard so I might just end up writing a whole separate story about it, who knows? :)**

 **This was totally just an impulse drabble that was swirling around in my brain after reading that comment and I had to write it out. Sorry guys!**

 **As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Bucky was cute.

He had pretty eyes and he was always really nice to her when he came over so Skye didn't question herself when she caught herself staring at him.

Nattie had gone downstairs to grab some food so she was coloring in the playroom with Bucky. They were both lying on their stomachs and Skye had abandoned her drawing in favor of staring at Bucky.

She sat up and blew her bangs out of her eyes, "Bucky?"

He looked up and smiled at her, "Yeah?"

She grabbed onto her moon pendant, "Do you like me?"

He laughed, "Yeah, you're pretty cool Princess."

She smiled. That was good, "Can you be my boyfriend?"

Bucky's eyes widened and he sat up. She grinned at him and tilted her head.

He was silent for a couple of seconds before rubbing the back of his neck, "Well, don't you think you're a little too young for a boyfriend?"

She didn't know when it was an acceptable time to start dating but she didn't think that six was too young.

She shook her head, "No, we're already friends, right?"

"Well yeah, but-"

Skye cut him off, "What's the difference then?"

Bucky was silent for a few moments, "Skye, I'm very honored that you want me to be your boyfriend but I don't think that we would work out, as a couple I mean."

She scrunched up her nose, "Why not?"

"Well, we have a different set of friends and we have different hobbies and you're about ten years younger than I am."

Skye pondered that. He had a point.

She rubbed her moon pendant between her fingers, "Oh."

Bucky gave her a crooked smile and handed her a blue crayon, "Besides, you're too good for me anyways."

She took the crayon from him and laughed, her short-lived crush already forgotten, " _You_ would be too good for _me_."

Bucky shook his head and poked her tummy, "Nuh-uh Princess, you're too good for me. I mean, you have a whole playground in your backyard. Who could compete with that?"

She thought about that and tugged on his hand, "Let's go play on it!"

They both stood up and she held onto his prosthetic hand. He looked down at her, "Alright, you have to push me on the swing though."

She laughed, "Not if I beat you to it!"

She started sprinting down the hallway and heard Bucky shout after her, "Hey! You little cheater!"

* * *

I know that this was pretty short and basically like nothing compared to the last chapter but I thought it was cute anyways. Thanks for reading! xx -Ariel


	11. Wanda & Pietro React to the Kidnapping

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by a guest and it is: "How about a story about Wanda and Pietro finding out about Skye being kidnapped and their reactions to it."**

 **IMPORTANT: This chapter takes place _during_ You Can Trust Me, more specifically, it starts off towards the end of Chapter 27 and ends in the beginning of Chapter 30. If you have not read You Can Trust Me, I would either recommend reading it so that you understand what the heck is going on, or you could try to figure out what's happening without the back story. Either way, I hope you guys enjoy!**

 **Don't forget to visit the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you would like to see next! If you have a prompt for me, please send it in (either on here or on my tumblr page) and I'll add it to the poll and write it out :) As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Wanda let her head fall down and land on top of her textbook, which was perched on top of her desk along with her notes and her laptop.

She loved studying abroad but sometimes she wondered if the stress of it all was worth it. About two seconds after this thought would cross her mind, she would _always_ tell herself that, yes, of course it was worth it.

She and her brother both knew what they were getting themselves into when they applied to this program. They knew that it wasn't like some of the other study abroad programs that their university offered, the ones where the kids took one or two classes and spent the rest of their time partying in foreign countries. _Their_ program was rigorous and demanding and she loved every second of it. She knew Pietro felt the same way.

She picked her head up and rubbed the spot where her forehead had connected with her textbook. She glanced at the clock and wasn't surprised to see how late it was. Her roommate was already asleep and had been for a couple of hours.

She put away her highlighters and closed her books before stretching. She quietly made her way over to her bed, checked her phone for any messages, and snuggled into her blankets when she found none.

Pre-med was kicking her ass and while she was learning a lot at all of these prestigious European universities, it was hard to keep all of the information that was being thrown at her crammed into her brain. That was why she had resorted to staying up way later than she normally did to go over her notes each night. It was helping her tremendously but her sleep schedule was suffering because of it.

She sighed and pulled the covers up and under her chin. She wiggled around until she was comfortable and felt herself slowly creep towards the edge of unconsciousness.

Right as she was about to fall asleep, her phone started to vibrate.

She groaned and let it go to voicemail. Her phone was sitting on her bedside table and in order to get it, she would have to roll over and reach for it and she was _way_ too comfortable and tired to do that right now.

Her phone stopped vibrating and she let out a breath. She felt herself slowly start to fall asleep when her phone started to go off again.

She angrily threw her blankets off of her and grabbed her phone off of her bedside table. She checked the caller i.d. and saw that it was her mom who was interrupting her precious and limited time for sleeping.

She glanced at her sleeping roommate before tiptoeing out of the room and into the hall. She squinted at the brightness in the hallway and answered her phone, "Hello?"

Even she could hear how tired she sounded.

"Wanda? I tried to call Pietro but he didn't answer."

Her mom's voice sounded strained but she put that off to having a new child to look after. She had only talked _to_ Skye once, but she had talked to her family _about_ Skye numerous times. From what she had heard, Skye was a sweetheart but was still healing from her past experiences in different foster homes and she assumed that that was why her mother sounded like she was teetering on the edge right now.

She breathed out a sarcastic laugh, "Yeah, he was probably sleeping, which was coincidentally what I was trying to do."

Her family sometimes forgot that they were in totally separate time zones so when they would call in the middle of the night, she would remind them of that and they would apologize and she would call them the next morning.

She was waiting for her mom to say something along the lines of forgetting about their time difference but that never came.

Her mom didn't say anything and she felt herself start to worry, "I was just joking, is everything alright?"

She thought she heard her mom sniffle but she didn't know for sure. It could have been their cell service.

Her mom stayed silent and she felt herself start to grow anxious, "Mom?"

Finally her mom spoke up. She kind of wished that she had stayed silent though.

"It's Skye. She's missing."

She pulled her phone away from her ear and stared at it for a second. This could not be real.

She pinched her arm and hoped that that would actually work and wake her up from this dream. It didn't work.

She put her phone back to her ear, "What do you mean?"

She could hear voices in the background of wherever her mom was and strained to hear her voice when she said, "She was at school and something happened and now she's missing. We're at the police station right now but they don't _know_ anything."

Wanda leaned against the cool wall, "Oh my god."

She didn't think her mom heard her, "We'll keep you updated but these idiots don't know a damn thing."

She rubbed her forehead, "Mom, we can come home. I'm sure there's a flight-"

Her mom cut her off, "Don't be silly. I'm sure by the time you got to the airport they'll have found Skye in an empty classroom or something."

She could tell that her mom was trying to convince herself that this was the case and Wanda hoped that it was true.

"Okay, I guess-"

Her mom cut her off, "Some officers just came in and I think they found something. We'll keep you updated. I've got to go, I love you."

Before she could respond, her mom hung up.

She stared at her phone again and let out a breath of disbelief. Was this really happening? Skye was missing? It felt surreal, like the fact that her little sister wasn't with her family hadn't hit her yet.

Wanda shook her head and considered her options. She _could_ just stay here and wait for someone in her family to call and tell her what was happening.

She immediately hated this option. It would make her feel helpless sitting by her phone, not knowing anything that was going on until someone remembered to call her and let her know.

She dismissed that idea and considered a new one. She _could_ fly home, be with her family and try to help even though her mother had said that it would probably be pointless. She needed to feel like she was being useful or that she was at least doing _something_.

Making up her mind, she walked back into her room, threw on some clothes that _weren't_ her pajamas, and packed a small bag. She made sure to grab her passport and wallet before running off to Pietro's room.

Before she knew it, she was out of breath and banging on his door. A guy walking down the hallway was giving her a strange look but she ignored him.

Pietro opened the door and gave her a dirty look. His hair was messy and she could tell that she had woken him up, "You know I have a class in like three hours right?"

She shoved past him and into his room. His roommate's bed was empty so she didn't feel _too_ bad for barging in here. She grabbed a duffel bag from under his bed and started shoving clothes into it, "Please tell me you have your passport."

He walked towards her and she reached towards his phone and shoved it and it's charger into the bag. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed, "What?"

She moved around his room, grabbing things and shoving them into his bag until it was full and she could zip it up, "We need to go home."

He stood in front of her and put both hands on her shoulders. He turned her so that she was looking at him and gave her a confused look, "Take a breath and explain that sentence."

She breathed in slowly and let it out, "Okay, sorry. Mom called and… and she said that Skye was missing."

He stared at her for a couple of seconds before moving away from her, grabbing something out of his desk drawer, and tugged on her hand, "Let's go."

He grabbed her phone from where it was clutched between her fingers and called someone. He hung up, gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, and led her through the hallways of his residence hall.

They walked outside and she looked around. This was as far ahead as she thought in her plan and she had no idea what to do next.

She let out a frustrated breath, "What are we doing? We have no way to get to the airport, we're in the middle of our semester, and our little sister is missing."

She cradled her head in her hands and felt Pietro rub soothing circles on her back, "It'll be okay sis."

She shook her head and looked up at him, "How do you know that? Skye is _missing_ and we can't do anything about it."

He pulled her in for a hug and she wrapped her arms around his back. He traced her name on her back with his fingers and she traced his name on his. It was something that they had done since they were children, something that allowed them to forget about the craziness that was going on around them and on the fact that they still had each other to get them through the bad days.

She let out a breath and felt some of her anxiousness dissipate. He pulled back and looked at her, "I know it'll be okay because I have a plan."

She raised an eyebrow, "It's been like two minutes, how do you already have a plan?"

"I'm just that good."

Their banter helped the rest of her anxiousness disappear. She felt herself edge away from the panic that was swirling around inside of her and started to feel more stable, "Let's hear it."

He took a step back and looked around, "I already called a cab and it should be here any minute. We'll take the first flight home when we get to the airport and can be there in a couple of hours. We'll call our advisors and explain what's going on and they'll understand. If not, it's just school. Family's more important anyways."

Pietro sounded so sure of his plan that she found herself nodding along with what he was saying, "Right, you're right."

He put and arm around her shoulder, "Of course I am."

She poked his side and saw a taxi come to a stop in front of them. Her brother grabbed her bag from her shoulder and pressed a kiss to the side of her head, "It'll be okay Wanda. Let's go."

She followed him into the backseat of the taxi, called their advisors to explain what was going on, and fidgeted around until they reached the nearest airport. They both hassled an airport employee until he found them two seats on the next flight home and she fell asleep on Pietro's shoulder waiting for their plane to arrive.

When her brother shook her awake, she checked her phone for any messages and let out a groan of frustration when there were none, "Has anyone called you?"

Her brother led her to the line that was waiting to board the plane, "No."

She felt tears start to well up in her eyes and told herself to get it together, "She's so little Pietro, you saw how tiny she is. She can't be all on her own."

Her brother grabbed onto her hand and gave it a squeeze, "She'll be okay. And before you ask how I know that, I just do."

She nodded and tried to push aside the feeling of helplessness that had taken root inside of her ever since her mom had called her earlier that night. She held onto her brother's hand like a lifeline and they found their seats on the plane.

The flight home was terrible.

She was trapped in a plane with nothing to do but think about all of the things that could be happening back at home. Pietro tried his best to keep her mind off of what was happening but it didn't work that well. No matter how unaffected Pietro tried to appear to be for her sake, she could see the worry in his eyes and saw how tensely he held himself. He was anxious too.

They _finally_ landed and she checked her phone again. There were no new messages and she felt like throwing her phone against the wall. They ran out of the airport and grabbed one of the taxi's that was waiting by the curbside. They threw themselves into the backseat and the driver looked back at them, "Where to?"

She glanced at her brother, "Should we go home? What if they're at the police station or something?"

Pietro thought about that and then shook his head, "Let's try home first."

She nodded and gave the driver their address. She shook her leg up and down, a nervous habit, and her brother gave her a look. She made a conscious effort to stop, "Sorry, can't help it."

He nodded, wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and let her lean into his side.

She took a breath and watched the buildings pass them by out the window, "She'll be okay. She has to be."

Her brother rubbed his hand down her arm, "She'll be okay."

They stayed like that for the remainder of the car ride, silently comforting each other. When they pulled up to their house, Wanda opened her wallet and let the driver swipe her credit card, she hadn't exchanged her currency yet, before following Pietro out of the car.

He pointed to the cars that were in the driveway, "They're here."

She gave him a hopeful look, "Maybe they found her already?"

He led her up the stairs and onto the porch before loudly hitting his knuckles against the door, "We can be mad at them for not calling us later."

She nodded and straightened up when the door opened and revealed her dad. His mouth hung open in shock, "What the… what are you guys doing here? You're supposed to be in Spain!"

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What'd you guys think? It was actually pretty fun writing in Wanda's pov for a change :)

Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who takes the time to leave a review! You're all so lovely and I really enjoy chatting with you :) xx -Ariel


	12. Phil Makes A Promise To Skye

**Hey guys! This was inspired by BerlockHolmes' prompt: "I would love to see a scene between Skye and Phil, after she starts to open up a little more, where he specifically promises not to be like the other foster fathers she's known."**

 **I probably would have posted sooner... but _someone_ *side-eyes boundbybooks* got me hooked on Continuum and I've been binge-watching that on Netflix for the past couple of days (jk I totally love it and don't regret losing sleep over it. Seriously, it's amazing!). Also, don't forget to head over to my profile page and use the poll to vote for which one-shot you'd like to read next! **

**Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye said goodbye to Ms. Hill when she saw her car pull into the parking lot. She started walking towards it but stopped when she saw Phil making his way towards her rather than May, who usually picked her up from school.

She grinned and ran the rest of the way towards him, "Daddy! Where's mommy?"

She launched herself at him and he easily caught her before setting her on his hip and kissing her cheek, "We forgot about your brother and sister's dentist appointment today. They have to get some fillings done."

She made a face at that and he grinned, "Yep, so it's just you and me for a little while kiddo."

He opened up the backseat and got her situated before starting the car and pulling out of the parking lot. She swung her feet back and forth and got her dad's attention, "Do I have to get fillings?"

Phil glanced at her through the rearview mirror, "No, you have very nice teeth remember? Dr. Bishop said so last week."

She _did_ remember. Her parents had taken her to the dentist and she had not had a very fun time. Between the weird noises that her teeth made when they cleaned them and the bad-tasting tooth polisher they used, she would say that being at the dentists was one of her least favorite places to be. The only good thing that came out of it was that Dr. Bishop had given her a cool sticker for being so good.

She stopped swinging her feet and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "Do fillings hurt?"

She didn't really want her siblings to be in pain and she was worried that their mouths would be hurting and she didn't want that to happen.

"No, they don't hurt. Nat and Trip will be fine sweetie. How about we stop for ice cream?"

She clapped her hands together, "Yes!"

Her dad chuckled, "Don't tell your brother and sister. They'll be jealous and they aren't supposed to have sweet things for a little while after they get their fillings."

She nodded and started singing along to the Tangled song that was playing softly in the background. Her dad turned the music up for her and she sang songs until they pulled into their favorite ice cream shop.

Phil helped her out of her booster seat and they made their way inside. She walked over to the counter but couldn't see into the display case so she made grabby hands at Phil until he picked her up. She peered into the display case and pointed to the flavor she wanted.

She still didn't really like talking to strangers so she leaned her head on Phil's shoulder and he swayed gently from side to side as he ordered her ice cream for her.

Phil set her on the counter and reached forward to brush her bangs out of her eyes, "How was school?"

She tilted her head and considered that, "It was okay. I wanted to play the xylophone in music class but Emma got to it first so I got stuck with the recorder."

The employee said something to Phil and her dad took out his wallet and handed over some change before turning back to her, "The recorder is pretty fun though. How about your Word of the Week? I'm very excited to hear what it is this week."

She straightened up and smiled. She loved telling her parents what the Word of the Week was. They were always very happy to hear what it was and they all tried to use it in as many sentences as they could.

"It's 'hugging'!"

Her dad thought over the word and then smiled, "I think that's my favorite Word of the Week so far."

She nodded, "I can spell it! H-U-G-G-I-N-G. It's kind of hard because there are two G's when it sounds like there should be one but I can do it."

Phil hummed in agreement and handed her her cup of ice cream. She gratefully took it from him and he set her on the ground. He held her hand and pushed the door open for them, "You're getting very good at your spelling sweetheart. Your mom and I are very proud of how hard you're working."

She felt her cheeks heat up and couldn't help but smile. She _was_ working very hard on her reading, spelling, and math. She had one-on-one time with Ms. Hill every day and she worked on worksheets with her parents all the time. It felt very good to have all that hard work acknowledged, especially by her dad.

"Thanks daddy."

He smiled down at her and held her ice cream for her while she got situated in her seat and then leaned forward to help buckle her in. He handed her back her ice cream and gave her a conspiratorial smile, "Remember, don't tell Tash and Trip about the ice cream. They can't have sweets until tomorrow."

She nodded seriously and happily ate her ice cream on the way home.

Sometimes it still caught her by surprise how positive and nice her parents were. Compared to some of the other families she had to live with, they felt unreal sometimes, like their eternal kindness could disappear in an instance.

She knew that would never happen though. It might have been true for some of the past families she lived with, they would pretend to be nice and then turn out mean, but she knew that May and Phil weren't like that. They were _amazing_ and she sometimes couldn't believe how lucky she was to end up with them.

Phil parked in the driveway and helped her get out of her booster seat. He grabbed her backpack and lunchbox from the seat and led her to the front door.

They walked inside and she dutifully threw her empty ice cream cup away while Phil set her stuff down on the dining room table.

She scrunched her nose up at her backpack. She knew that she would have to start her homework and she didn't want to, "Can I wait to do my homework? My brain hurts from thinking too much at school."

Phil studied her and then nodded, "We can start it in an hour. Is that long enough for your brain to stop hurting?"

He was smirking at her and she smiled real big and ran over to him. She started tugging on his hand, "Yes! Let's go have a tea party!"

She thought she heard her dad groan but he followed her upstairs nonetheless.

She set up her tea set and grabbed Alice and Mara so that they could join them. She handed her dad a tiara and he dutifully put it on his head and thanked her as she handed him a teacup full of imaginary tea.

They talked about nothing in particular until she told him that she was out of tea and started to put everything away. She walked around and went to grab the tiara off of his head when he surprised her by tickling her sides and pulling her into his lap.

She giggled and squirmed around until he stopped and turned her around in his lap so that she could see his face. His smile dimmed a little bit and she tilted her head and wondered what he was thinking about.

She reached up and poked his cheek, "What's wrong?"

He was silent for a couple of moments while he stared at her intensely, "You're happy here, right sweetheart?"

She raised her eyebrows in shock. She wasn't expecting this, "Yes! I love it here with you. I'm happy you're my family."

A small smile tugged at her dad's lips and she felt herself relax a little after that strange question was answered.

"Good, because I always want you to be happy. Your mom and I both want that."

She nodded and listened intently even though she wasn't really sure where this serious conversation was coming from.

Phil kept on talking, "I know you weren't really happy before you came to live with us-"

She bit the inside of her cheek and looked down at her hands. She didn't like thinking about the time before she came to live with May and Phil. It wasn't very fun.

"-and I wanted to make sure that you knew that it will never be like that here."

She nodded and leaned against her dad's chest.

He rubbed circles onto her back and she let out a breath. This talk was kind of intense, especially compared to the lighthearted bantering that went on during their tea party, but she was glad that they were having it. She _knew_ this family, _her_ family, was different than all the other ones and it felt nice to have her dad reassure her of what she already knew.

Her dad continued on, "I also know that some of your foster dad's weren't very good to you and treated you badly-"

She grabbed onto his shirt and clenched the material between her fingertips. She didn't like thinking of her past foster fathers, especially Mr. Ramsey.

Phil paused to lean down and press a kiss to the top of her head. He waited until she loosened her hold on his shirt before continuing, "-But I really want you to know that I will _never_ treat you badly. I want you to feel happy and comfortable and safe when you're with me. I love you sweetheart."

She threw her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. She felt him envelope her in a tight hug and she smiled, "I love you too and I know all of that already."

She felt Phil let out a breath, "Good."

She leaned back so that she could see his face, "They were bad, but you're good. You're the _best_ and I'm always safe with you."

He smiled at her and she grinned back at him.

She scrunched up her nose when she thought of something, "Are _you_ happy?"

Phil immediately responded, "I'm happy when you're happy."

Her smile grew wider, "I'm always happy."

He laughed and then stood up with her in his arms, "Then I am too."

Phil walked out of the playroom and started to go down the stairs. She groaned, "Is it homework time?"

Phil chuckled, "Yes. Come on, we can get it done real fast and then watch some Spongebob."

He set her down on a chair at the dining room table and then sat next to her, "How long 'til mommy comes home?"

He checked the clock, "They should be here any minute. Now, no more stalling. What do you have to do today?"

She pulled her backpack towards her and took out her reading workbook, "Just some reading."

She flipped through the pages and found where she left off and worked with Phil for a couple of minutes before she heard the door open up.

She smiled when she saw Nattie and Trip make their way over to her with May following behind them, talking on her cell phone.

Trip immediately went to the refrigerator and studied its contents while Nattie stood beside her and peered at her homework, "How was your day маленькая звезда?"

She smiled brightly at her sister, "It was good. We had ice cream!"

Trip stopped looking through the fridge to peer at her while Natasha raised an eyebrow.

Trip said, "Without us!?" at the same time Nattie said, "Did you now?"

Phil cleared his throat and Skye caught onto her mistake and started backpedalling, "No we didn't!"

Her sibling's didn't look convinced so she grabbed onto her sisters hand, smiled real big, and tried to distract them, "Want to know my Word of the Week? It's 'hugging' and I can spell it! H-U-G-G-I-N-G! It's kind of hard to spell but I can do it!"

Trip gave her a thumbs up before poking his head back into the refrigerator. Nattie's eyebrow was still raised but she sat down next to her and gave her a smile, "That's very impressive Skye but what was that about ice cream?"

She looked towards Phil and gave him a guilty look. "Oops."

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Awww cute Papa Phil moment! Let me know what you guys thought! I love reading all of your reviews :)

If you have a prompt for me that you'd like to see written out, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page, and I'll add it to the poll and write it out! Speaking of the poll, don't forget to go vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next! Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, and reviewed! You're all beautiful angels! xx -Ariel


	13. Skye Confronts Her Fear of Bathtubs

**Hey guys! This was inspired by Domenic675's prompt:** **"What if the shower broke down or something like that and Skye had to confront the bath?"**

 **Sooo on the poll, pretty much every option is tied up for either most-voted-for or next-most-voted-for one-shot which is kind of crazy because there's like 50 options on there. I took that poll down and put a new one up so e _veryone_ can go back and vote again (you get 6 votes this time rather than 3) and hopefully that will take care of the ridiculous amount of ties that took place on the previous poll :)**

 **Also I'm going to be going on a road trip with my family for the next couple of days and I don't know how often I'll have wifi so updates might be a little sparse for the next 5-6 days. Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye was having a very fun time playing in the puddles left behind by the recent rain showers when a strange van pulled into their driveway and distracted her. She wiped the back of her hand across her face and grimaced when she saw the dark streak of mud that was left behind. She wiped the mud on her shorts and turned towards the backdoor. She ran inside just as she saw Phil opening the front door to a nice looking man.

She walked over to her mom, who was washing dishes by the sink, and tapped her thigh, "Who's that guy?"

May started to answer her but did a double take when she looked down at her, "He's the- Skye! Did you leave any mud outdoors? You're very dirty sweetie."

She gave her mom a guilty look and fidgeted from side to side, "It was fun."

May sighed and reached forward to wipe some flecks of mud off of her face, "He's the repair guy and _hopefully_ he'll have the shower fixed soon so that you can go wash all that dirt off of you."

Skye dutifully stood still while her mom tried to get the mud out of her hair and face. After a couple of minutes, May gave up and started waving her hands around, "It's no use. Just stay in the kitchen until we can get you into a shower. I want to keep this relatively contained."

She nodded and looked around the kitchen.

While she loved her kitchen, it wasn't very fun and there weren't any comfy places to sit.

She pointed to the ground, "Can I sit here?"

May held up a finger and Skye waited while her mom laid out a towel for her to sit on. Her damp clothes felt a little uncomfortable and the drying mud made her skin start to itch but she didn't complain because playing in the puddles had been a lot of fun.

She watched her mom finish washing the dishes and then start to pull things out for dinner as she waited for the shower to get fixed. _Finally_ she heard the front door shut and Phil walked into the kitchen.

She straightened up, "Can I take a shower now?"

Phil gave her an apologetic look before turning to May, "He said there's something wrong with the shower head, something about a new part or I don't know, and he won't have the part to fix it until it's shipped in tomorrow."

May glanced at her before focusing on Phil again, "Did you tell him…"

Her dad nodded, "Yes, I made sure he knew the… severity of the situation and he still said that there was nothing he could do until tomorrow."

She pulled her wet shirt away from her body and made an impatient sound, "Mommy, my clothes don't feel very good. Can I take a shower now?"

Both of her parents stared at each other for a couple of seconds before turning to her. She stood up and Phil walked towards her. "Wow Skye, how did you even manage to get that dirty?"

She shrugged and she saw May disappear before Phil reached down and picked her up. She dangled in front of him so that she didn't get his clothes dirty and he started walking towards the bathroom.

She was happy to finally get all this dirt off of her so she stayed still and ignored how the position that Phil was holding her in wasn't very comfortable.

Phil walked into the bathroom and all of her happiness vanished.

Her dad set her down and she pointed, "Why is she doing that?"

She backed into Phil's legs, not caring that she was probably getting his pants all muddy, and pressed herself against him.

May was running a bath, not a shower like she _always_ did, and was in the middle of pouring something into the water. Phil put a hand on her shoulder and she grasped it like a lifeline.

May shut the water off and turned to her, "The shower's broken sweetie, you'll have to take a bath instead."

Skye shook her head, "I thought that guy fixed it!"

May shook her head, "It won't be fixed until tomorrow."

Phil petted her head with his other had and Skye leaned further into him. Why was her mom doing this to her?

She felt tears start to well up in her eyes but forced them back, "But… I don't want to take a bath. I'm not even that dirty, it's okay right?"

She looked up to her dad but he shook his head at her, "You're a mess sweetheart, you need to take a bath."

She shook her head again and pulled away from Phil, "No! Baths are bad! I don't like them!"

She turned to May, "Please mommy! Don't make me do this, please!"

She felt a tear roll down her cheek and hated herself for crying. Her mom walked towards her but Skye stopped her when she tried to reach a hand towards her. She didn't want to be touched.

May looked sad but she didn't try to touch her, "Skye, baths aren't bad. Look, we put bubbles in there and there are toys you can play with. Baths are fun!"

She chewed on her bottom lip and didn't say anything.

She didn't really know why she still had such an aversion to baths. Talking with Jiaying had helped her work through some of the things that had happened to her in previous foster homes and she _knew_ that nothing bad would happen with May or Phil… but she was still scared of them and it didn't make any sense.

May kneeled in front of her but didn't try to reach towards her again, "We can play some Tangled songs and it'll be over before you know it."

She refused to make eye contact with her mom and tried to control her tears.

She didn't want to take a bath and she didn't know why both of her parents were making her do this. It wasn't nice.

Phil walked around her, picked something up off of the ground, and held it up, "You can draw on the walls."

She slowly looked over to him and she felt her tears slow down, "What?"

Phil smiled at her and handed her the box that he was holding up. It looked like a box of crayons. She wasn't supposed to draw on the walls with crayons.

"These are special bath crayons. You can draw on the wall with them and they'll wash off when you're done."

She stared at the box in her hands and scrunched up her nose, "For real?"

May let out a breathy laugh, "For real."

She sniffled and didn't stop May when she reached forward and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "You're safe with us remember?

She nodded and let her mom wipe away the last of her tears, "Okay."

Phil smiled brightly at her, "Okay! I'll go grab my phone so we can play some music."

He leaned down to kiss her forehead but thought better of it when he saw how dirty it still was. He caressed her cheek instead and then disappeared down the hallway.

May helped her get out of her damp and muddy clothes and then reached into the bathtub to check the water temperature. May nodded at her and she took a deep breath and stood in front of the tub.

Her mom reached forward, took the box of crayons from her, and set her into it and Skye stood stiffly in the middle of the bathtub. May put a gentle hand on her shoulder and urged her to sit down so she did.

The water was nice and warm and the bubbles were a cool blue color but she still didn't like it. She glanced over to her mom and May gave her a warm smile and held up a wet washcloth, "Close your eyes sweetie, I'm going to wash off your face."

She did as she was told and let her mom clean her face with the soft towel. When May finished, she blinked a couple of times to get used to the light again and saw Phil walk back into the bathroom. He messed with his phone until Tangled music started to play softly in the background and Skye instantly started humming along to the song.

May handed her the box of crayons and she gingerly took it. She chose a green crayon and set the box onto the edge of the tub. She scooted over so that she was closer to the wall and started to draw a puppy.

She continued to hum to the music and draw on the wall until she felt hands in her hair. She looked over and saw her mom hold up sudsy hands, "I'm just gonna clean your hair."

Skye eyed her mom's hands before finally nodding and turning back to her half-finished drawing. It was cool to draw on the walls, especially because she had never been allowed to do it before.

Her mom's fingers massaged her scalp and Skye leaned into the touch. It felt _really_ nice.

She didn't fight it when May helped her lean back and rinse her hair off. She brushed the water out of her face as she sat back up and started playing with the bubbles that were floating around her.

She picked some up and held them in her palm. She blew on the bubbles and they went flying towards May, who was sitting by the bathtub watching her. Some bubbles got caught on May's shirt and some flew into her hair. Skye couldn't help but laugh.

Her mom smiled at her before picking up some of her own bubbles and putting them on the tip of Skye's nose. She crossed her eyes so that she could see the end of her nose and tried to blow the bubbles off. It didn't work very well.

She reached up and wiped them off and when she put her hand back into the water, it collided with something. She grabbed onto the object and held it up to inspect it; it was a plastic toy Nemo.

She made the fish swim around in the water while May ran the washcloth over the rest of her body until she was clean. Her mom leaned back when she was finished and Skye let go of Nemo in favor of her bath crayons. She drew herself and Natasha on the wall and smiled proudly at it when she was finished.

Phil's voice caught her attention, "All done?"

She nodded.

Phil walked forward and leaned over, "Watch this."

He splashed water onto the wall where her drawings were and she squealed in delight when she saw all the colors run down the wall. She pushed his hands aside, "I wanna do it!"

She excitedly splashed water onto the wall until her drawings were gone and the color had run down into the bathwater.

She turned back to her parents and saw that May was holding open a fluffy towel for her. She stood up and stepped out of the tub and into the towel.

May dried her off and wrapped her up tight so that she was cocooned in the towel before smiling at her, "Was that so bad?"

She shook her head and flicked her wet hair out of her face, "No, can I use the crayons again? I _like_ drawing on the walls."

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What'd you guys think? Leave a review and let me know :)

Don't forget to head over to my profile page and vote on the _new_ poll for which one-shots you'd like to see written out next! Thanks for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who takes the time to leave me very kind reviews! You guys make my day :D xx -Ariel


	14. Skye Gets Hurt

**Hey guys! This was inspired by a guest's prompt: "Skye could get hurt and try to hide it from May and Phil." The only reason that I could see Skye hiding an injury is if she was doing something she wasn't supposed to and even then, I don't think she would be able to lie for too long :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next!**

 **Sorry for the delay guys! My road trip was very fun and I was going to update a couple days ago but then my laptop screen shattered and I had to wait until I got home to replace it. Thanks for being patient and for reading! As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye had recently been introduced to jumping on beds as a fun activity. She had gone over to Jemma's house and her friend had excitedly coaxed her into hopping up and down on the bed with her. She didn't know why the idea had never crossed her mind, she just thought that beds were made for sleeping on, but now that she knew how fun it could be, she wanted to jump on her bed all the time.

While _she_ loved jumping on the bed, her _parents_ weren't so fond of it.

They said that they didn't want her to get hurt and that was why they didn't like her jumping around on her bed. She couldn't see how she could get hurt when she was on a soft bed but they were her parents and they made the rules so she listened to them… most of the time.

Sometimes she just couldn't help but disobey their rules. Jumping on the bed was _fun_ and it seemed harmless so she only felt semi-guilty when she did it behind their backs.

That's what she was doing right now.

May was downstairs and she was in her room. Her siblings weren't home from school yet and Phil was still working so she was all alone upstairs. She didn't have any homework to do so her mom had sent her upstairs to play while she did paperwork at the dining room table.

Instead of playing with her dolls like her mom thought she was doing, she was happily jumping up and down on her soft mattress with Alice in one hand and Mara in the other. She would try to jump as high as she could while occasionally jumping off of her bed and landing on her plush carpet. It was really fun and she couldn't help but laugh at how weightless she felt while in midair.

One time, she jumped off of her bed and landed heavily on the balls of her feet and made a loud thud. She froze and strained to listen and see if May would come and investigate and sure enough, she heard footsteps making their way towards her door a couple seconds later.

She ran over and sat down by her dollhouse and pretended to be playing intensely with her dolls when she heard her door creak open. She turned and gave her mom an innocent smile, "Hey mommy."

May poked her head into Skye's room and looked around before entering to room fully. She leaned against the doorway and studied Skye, "Hey sweetie. What are you up to?"

Skye waved Alice in front of her, "Playing with my dollies."

May gave her a suspicious look, "What was that noise?"

She kept her innocent smile in place and widened her eyes a little, "I don't know."

She felt bad for lying to her mom, lying was _bad_ , but she knew that she would probably get in trouble for breaking the rules so she didn't know what else to do. She didn't want to get in trouble.

Her mom stayed silent and continued to study her until Skye waved Alice around in front of her and broke the silence, "Want to play with me?"

May _finally_ cracked a smile and gave her an apologetic look, "Maybe in a little while sweetie, I have to finish up some things from work."

Skye nodded and watched May disappear. She let out a relieved breath and cautiously made her way back onto her bed. She would have to be more careful.

She waited a little while before she started jumping up and down on her bed again. She jumped off of her bed and onto her floor, this time making sure to land softly, before climbing back onto her bed and doing it again and again.

She was starting to lose her breath from exertion and told herself that this would be the last time she jumped onto her floor. She grinned and jumped up and down on her mattress before launching herself off of her bed and onto the floor. Mid-jump, she heard the front door bang open and heard Trip and Nattie's voices float upstairs. She jerked her head towards her door and she was so distracted that she forgot to focus on her landing. She felt her feet hit the floor but this time her right ankle twisted and she fell to her knees.

She let out a whimper shifted so that she was sitting down. She felt tears well up in her eyes and tried to ignore the flare of pain in her ankle, hoping that it would go away soon.

She heard footsteps walk down the hallway outside her room and heard Trip's and Natasha's bedroom doors open and close. She thought that she was in the clear until she heard one door open up again and footsteps heading her way. She shook her head and forced the tears in her eyes to vanish just before Nattie stuck her into Skye's room.

Her sister smiled at her and she tried to grin back at her but she could tell that her smile didn't feel like it usually did. Natasha gave her a curious look, "Hi Skye, what're you doing?"

Skye tried to look relaxed and started to feel a little better as the sharp pain in her ankle turned into a dull ache, "Just… hanging out. What are you doing?"

Natasha tilted her head, "I was going to see if you wanted to go to the playground."

Skye really wanted to go to the castle playground with her sister but she knew that they would walk there and she didn't know if her ankle would like that very much. It hurt.

She grabbed onto her moon pendant and thought quickly, "Can we watch a movie instead? I'm tired."

Natasha smiled at her again and nodded, "Sure. I'm gonna go grab my phone. Why don't you go pick out a movie and we'll meet downstairs?"

Skye nodded and forced herself to smile at her sister, "Okay Nattie."

Natasha walked out of her room and Skye felt her smile melt off of her face. She gently pulled her ankle towards her and winced. It still hurt.

She should have listened to her parents and not jumped on the bed. They were right, she _could_ get hurt.

She took a deep breath determinedly tried to stand up. Her ankle ached when she put weight on it so she limped her way into the playroom, blindly grabbed a movie, and made her way down the hallway and to the stairs.

The stairs were a problem. She couldn't hop down the stairs, she would definitely fall and probably end up hurting herself more. She thought for a minute before sitting down on the top step and scooting her way down the staircase. This way she didn't have to put any weight on her hurt ankle and wouldn't fall down the steps.

She made it to the bottom of the stairs and stood up carefully. Natasha and May both looked over to her and smiled. Her mom was still at the dining room table and Nattie was sitting on the couch waiting for her. She breathed in deeply and forced herself not to limp on her way to the couch. She didn't want them to know that she was hurt, that way she couldn't get in trouble.

Her ankle throbbed with each step she took and she let out a sigh of relief as she collapsed onto the couch next to her sister.

She handed Natasha the movie she had picked out and her sister glanced at it before giving her a startled look, "You want to watch a documentary about… birds? I didn't even know we had this movie."

Skye groaned internally and thought that she probably should have picked out a better movie but she was stuck with it now so she might as well commit, "I like birds."

Nattie shrugged and stood up to put the movie into the DVD player. Skye settled into the couch and cuddled close to Natasha when her sister sat back down next to her.

The documentary was boring but she pretended to like it. Halfway through, Phil walked through the door and she smiled at him, "Daddy!"

He looked at the television before walking over to them, "Are you guys watching a documentary? Willingly?"

She heard Natasha laugh sarcastically and grinned as her dad leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head, "It's about birds. Do you want to watch it with us?"

Her dad leaned back and looked desperately towards the dining room, "Actually, I have to go talk to mommy. Maybe after though."

She watched as Phil escaped into the dining room and turned her focus back onto the documentary. It was pretty boring and she honestly didn't know how Nattie was sitting through this.

 _Finally_ the documentary ended and Natasha turned to her, "Well, that was… fun. I guess. Next time I'll pick out the movie though."

Skye laughed and nodded in agreement. She watched as Nattie took the DVD out of the player and walked back upstairs. She made sure that both of her parents were distracted before standing up and easing some weight onto her injured ankle.

She scrunched up her face as small shocks of pain burst from her ankle. Yep, it still hurt.

She tried to walk towards her mom and dad without limping but her ankle gave out after a couple of steps and she stumbled. She caught herself and made sure she was balanced before glancing up to her parents. They were both staring at her.

Phil's voice sounded concerned when he said, "You alright sweetheart?"

She swallowed and nodded, "I just tripped."

Phil still looked worried but nodded anyway, "Okay, try to be more careful alright? We don't want you getting hurt."

Skye felt guilt rush through her and ducked her head so that her parents couldn't see her face, "Okay."

She felt so incredibly guilty right now. First she had broken the rules and then she had lied right to her parent's faces. She was being bad and she didn't like the feelings that were coursing through her due to her deception.

She limped her way over to the dining room table and tugged on May's sleeve, "Mommy, I did a bad thing."

She was staring at the ground but she saw her mom turn to her from the corner of her eye, "What do you mean Skye?"

Breathing in deeply, Skye continued to keep her eyes on her feet and said, "I was jumping on my bed today even though you told me that I wasn't supposed to."

Her parents were quiet for a couple of seconds before she heard Phil speak up, "Thank you for being honest with us Skye."

She hopefully lifted her head up and looked at her mom and dad, "So… I'm not in trouble?"

Phil glanced at May before turning back to her, "We appreciate you telling us the truth but you still broke the rules so I think that you should go to bed early tonight. Does that seem fair?"

Skye looked from her dad to her mom. They were making sure that she thought that her punishment was fair? This was new.

She quickly nodded, "Yes, that's fair."

May pulled her in for a hug and Skye winced a little as she put weight on her ankle. She wrapped her arms around her mom's neck, "Are you mad at me?"

She felt her mom comb her fingers through her hair, "No, I'm a little disappointed that you broke the rules but I'm very proud that you were honest with us."

Skye pressed her face against May's neck and felt her guilt start to melt away. Her parents weren't mad at her and she only had to go to sleep early as punishment. She felt much better.

She leaned back and bit her lip, "Um, I might have hurt my ankle too."

May gave her a sharp look before lifting her up and setting her on the table. Skye held out her right ankle and Phil leaned forward to inspect it, "Did you twist it?"

Skye nodded and watched as her dad turned her ankle from side to side, "It doesn't seem too bad, just needs some ice."

Phil walked into the kitchen and May gave her a stern look, "Why didn't you say something sooner?"

She rubbed her moon pendant between her fingers, "I didn't want to get in trouble."

Her mom stepped closer to her and pulled Skye close so that Skye could lean against her chest, "Sweetie, Phil and I make rules so that you can be safe. We know that you don't always like the rules but we know what's best for you and you need to follow them so that you don't get hurt, like this."

Skye sniffled and nodded, "I know, I'll be better at following the rules. I promise."

May hugged her closer, "Thank you."

She heard Phil approach them and couldn't stop herself from flinching when the cold bag of ice touched her ankle. Phil held the icepack against her ankle and looked up at her, "You're ankle should be fine sweetheart. Just go easy on it for the rest of the night."

Skye nodded, "I'm sorry for breaking the rules."

Phil patted her knee, "We forgive you Skye."

She pressed herself closer to her mom and marveled at how strange this interaction had been compared to her past experiences. In past foster families, she never would have admitted to doing something wrong because she knew that she would be punished way more severely that May and Phil had punished her. They hadn't even yelled at her! Maybe being honest about doing something wrong was better than lying about it. She didn't feel guilty anymore and her mom and dad had forgiven her for being bad.

She pulled away from May slightly and looked at her parents, "I love you."

Phil stretched up to press a kiss to the side of her head, "We love you too."

* * *

What'd you guys think? This actually happened to me when I was seven and this was exactly how my parents reacted so I kind of cheated writing this chapter.

Don't forget to go vote on the poll! Thank you so much for reading and for being patient with me! You're all gems :) xx -Ariel


	15. Skye Runs Into The Ramsey's

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by both silverliningineachcloud and heyisthatafez and it goes along the lines of Skye running into a previous abusive foster family. If you haven't read You Can Trust Me, this chapter might be a little confusing for you because it references a certain family that was mentioned several times throughout that fic**. **I hope you like it!**

 **Don't forget to head over to my profile and vote on the poll for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thanks for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Usually Skye thought that shopping wasn't very fun but when she was with her family, it was different. Looking at different clothes, shoes, books, and toys with her family was _fun_ and they always had a good time hanging out together.

They had all been wandering around the mall together but then Trip had left them to meet his friends at the movie theater so now it was just her, Nattie, May and Phil. Her sister was carrying a shopping bag in one hand and Skye's hand in the other. Her mom and dad were walking right next to them and they were all heading to the food court to have lunch.

The mall was kind of busy and the amount of people milling around made her a little anxious but she made sure that she was attached to either her sister or her parents at all times and that made her feel better.

She sat down at a table with May while Phil and Natasha went to go grab them some food and Skye looked around. There were groups of teenagers walking around and families waiting in lines to get food. A lot of people were laughing and smiling at the people they were with and seeing other people happy made Skye's lips twitch up into a small smile.

May caught her attention, "If you eat all your lunch, maybe we can get some ice cream."

Skye rested her chin in the palm of her hand and smiled at her mom, "Yes! I'll eat it all, I promise!"

May smiled at her, "I think I'm going to get vanilla, what about you?"

She gave it a lot of thought before saying, "Chocolate chip."

Her mom smiled at her, "Good choice."

Skye went back to people watching until Phil and Natasha walked up to them, each holding a tray full of food. They set the trays on the table and sat down, her sister sat next to her while Phil sat next to May.

Phil took a plate off of a tray and set it in front of her, "We got you a slice of pizza, is that okay?"

Skye nodded and eagerly lifted her pizza to her mouth. She was determined to finish all of her lunch and she was pretty hungry so she was confident that she would be able to do it.

She was halfway through with her lunch when a blonde-haired boy wearing a grey shirt ran past her, stopped, and backtracked so that he was standing in front of her, "Mary Sue, why are you here?"

She reacted on instinct, "That's not my name."

By the times the words were out of her mouth, she recognized who the boy was. He was Aaron Ramsey and if he was here, that meant that his parents weren't too far behind.

She nervously glanced around and spotted the couple walking towards them. She didn't think that they had recognized her yet and she hoped that they never did. She scrambled out of her chair, scurried around the table, and attached herself to Phil's arm. Maybe they wouldn't see her?

She tried to get Aaron to go away so that Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey didn't stop and see her. She anxiously waved at him and hoped that he got the hint, "Bye."

She felt a hand come down and rub up and down her arm and she couldn't help but jump at the contact. She looked up and into Phil's concerned face. She gave him an apologetic look before turning back to Aaron and she noticed that he hadn't budged.

He smirked at her and then started waving his hands around, "Hey, mom and dad! Look who's here!"

She turned and saw the exact moment that they spotted her. She gripped onto Phil's arm tighter and leaned into him. She could tell that her family wasn't really sure what was going on and were trying to figure it out but she wasn't able to say anything as she watched the Ramsey's approach her.

They looked just like they had when they had dropped her back off at the orphanage. They appeared to be picture perfect, all of them had blonde hair and blue eyes and she had stuck out like a sore thumb whenever she had gone anywhere with them with her dark hair and eyes contrasting with their light features. At first glance, they looked like a kind family but she knew that they weren't. She had thought that they were going to be nice, the first couple of days that she had lived with them, they _had_ been nice, but then they had turned mean. They were _bad_. She never felt like she belonged with them.

She had talked about the Ramsey's with Jiaying a lot. It had taken a long time for her therapist to get through to her and help her understand that all of the bad things that had happened with the Ramsey's hadn't been her fault. She still didn't like thinking about how they had treated her, them yelling, hitting, and pushing her weren't fun things to think about, and so seeing them in front of her made her feel really small and scared.

Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey stopped in front of their table and turned towards her. They were smiling and would appear friendly to anyone who didn't know them. She knew better than that.

Mrs. Ramsey rested an arm on Aaron's shoulder and tried to make eye contact with her, "Hello."

Skye casted her eyes downward and stared at the table. She swallowed nervously and didn't say anything. She just wanted them to go away.

Phil cleared his throat, "I don't think we've meet before."

She heard Mrs. Ramsey's laugh, "We used to foster that little girl over there. Hello dear."

Skye knew that they were looking at her and Mrs. Ramsey's voice sounded sweet and kind but Skye refused to look up at her.

She tugged on Phil's sleeve and whispered, "Can we go? Please?"

She felt Phil turn towards her and she looked up at him but before he could answer her, she heard May speak up. Her mom's voice sounded angry and Skye leaned further into Phil. She didn't think it was possible to get any closer to him than she already was but she managed it. "You have a lot of nerve."

She looked over to May and saw that she had her mad-face on. It was sometimes difficult to tell that she was mad but Skye could tell by the downward angle of her eyebrows and the firm set of her mouth. May was mad and Skye just wanted the Ramsey's to disappear. She had been having a fun day and they were ruining it, just like they ruined everything.

Mrs. Ramsey's voice sounded innocent and confused when she answered, "I don't think I know what you're talking about."

She glanced back at Phil, saw recognition dawn on his face, and then turned back to May. Her mom scooted her chair back and stood up, "You have a lot of nerve walking over here and pretending to be kind to the little girl that you _tormented_. You better leave right now."

Aaron took a step forward and gave May a dirty look, "Don't talk to my mom that way lady!"

Nattie stood up. Skye could tell that her sister was a little confused but the redhead put her hands on her hips and gave Aaron a glare, "If my mom's talking to your mom like that then she deserves it, okay kid?"

Nattie was right, Mrs. Ramsey _did_ deserve it and she hoped that the Ramsey's would take May's advice and leave but they didn't move. Aaron just scoffed at Natasha and stepped back so that he was standing in front of Mrs. Ramsey again.

She tugged on Phil's sleeve again and whimpered, "I want to go. Can we go daddy?"

Phil stood up and she grabbed onto his hand. He looked down at her, "I think that would be best."

She let out a sigh of relief and thought that everything was over before she heard Mr. Ramsey speak up.

He had been quiet during the whole conversation and Skye had hoped that he would stay that way but of course he didn't.

"Your accusations didn't seem to hold much weight with the police and they certainly don't hold much weight with us." His voice was just like she remembered, deep and gravely, and she remembered all the bad things that he had called her and the mean words that he had said to her. She just wanted to get away from him. She didn't like how small she felt around him.

She saw May's hands clench into fists and Phil put a hand on her arm. Skye thought that he did that to help calm her down but it didn't seem to work very much, "You should be ashamed of yourselves. Stay the hell away from my daughter and if you ever try to talk to her again, you'll regret it."

Mr. Ramsey smirked at her, "Is that a threat?"

May's eyes flashed and Skye tightened her hold on Phil's hand, "You know damn well what it was."

Phil tugged on her mom's arm, "Let's go Melinda."

May stepped back and turned to her. When her mom made eye contact with her, her features softened fractionally and she gave her a soothing smile. It looked a little out of place because her eyes still looked angry but Skye appreciated it anyways. Skye let go of Phil's hand and reached up so that it was easier for May to lift her up and set her on her hip.

She felt much better once she was wrapped up in May's arms and before her family started to walk away, she looked back over to the Ramsey's. Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey both had hard looks on their faces and Skye's nervousness receded and anger took its place.

The Ramsey's were a bad family, they did mean things and it had taken awhile for her to understand that what they did wasn't her fault. Even though she knew that she wasn't the cause of their actions and that they were in the wrong here, she couldn't help but feel weak around them and she _hated_ it. She wanted them to know that _they_ were the bad guys and they didn't have any control over her anymore.

Skye glared at Mr. Ramsey, raised her right hand, and pointed at him, "You're a bad man."

She quickly wrapped both of her arms around May and hid her face in her neck. She felt herself start to cry and didn't even know why. Relief rushed through her when she felt May start to walk away.

She kept her face hidden and relaxed a little when May shifted her so that she could run her fingers through Skye's hair.

Seeing the Ramsey's had _not_ been fun and it had forced her to think about a lot of bad memories but she was proud of herself for standing up to them, even if she hadn't said much and had hidden afterwards. Before, she _never_ would have said anything like that to Mr. Ramsey.

Her mom moved her hand down to start rubbing soothing circles on her back, "You okay sweetie?"

Skye sniffled, leaned back so that she could see May, nodded, and studied her mom's face, "You said a bad word."

May breathed out a laugh and leaned forward so that she could press a kiss to her forehead, "I did. I'm sorry."

She just nodded and looked over when Phil caught her attention, "How about some ice cream?"

Nattie reached over and interlocked their pinkies, "I could go for ice cream. Skye?"

She looked back over to May, "I didn't finish my lunch."

May smiled at her, "I think we can make an exception."

Skye wiped the remaining tears off of her face and gave her mom a wobbly smile, "I can get chocolate chip?"

Her mom nodded at her and Skye leaned down so that she could rest her forehead against May's shoulder. Her left pinky stayed interwoven with Nattie's and she tightly wrapped her right arm around May's neck.

The confrontation with the Ramsey's hadn't been very nice but she remembered her talks with Jay and knew that they were her past and May and Phil and the rest of her family were her future.

* * *

I know that the Ramsey's are a fictional family that _I_ made up, but I _really_ hate them! Let me know what you guys thought! Don't forget to go vote on the poll and thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	16. Trip's New Girlfriend Isn't Very Nice

**Hey guys! This was inspired by LupaMalum's prompt: 'Trip starts dating someone who is awful to everyone but acts all nice when he's around. This finally breaks down when she's particularly rude to Skye and Nat can't take it anymore.' LupaMalum also wanted Trip's girlfriend to be Amora the Enchantress and if you aren't sure who that is, she is Lorelei's sister (the Lorelei who made an appearance on AoS). I hadn't heard of her before so I'm extremely sorry if she is a little out of character! I did some research but I don't know if it's actually authentic. Also, there's a mild language warning for this chapter. I hope you like it anyways!**

 **Don't forget to head over to my profile page and vote on the poll for which one-shot you would like to see written out next!**

 **I'd like to thank everyone who takes the time to leave a kind review :) You guys make me so happy and it's hard to believe how many people are enjoying these one-shots. Thank you guys! :) As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Natasha didn't like Trip's new girlfriend.

Before Trip introduced her, she had never really heard of Amora. She was a freshman and Trip and Amora were both juniors and she mostly ignored everyone at school unless they were in her small friendship circle. She didn't _care_ about what was going on with the rest of the student body and that was why she wasn't aware of Amora's reputation when Trip first introduced them.

Trip was well-liked around the school, with his easygoing personality and good looks, and it wasn't unusual for him to be sought after by many girls. She always heard people talking about how cute he is whenever she walked down the hallway and even though it was weird hearing people admire her brother, she would just make a disgusted face and keep walking. Trip usually ignored the attention so it was kind of unusual when Trip found her during lunch and introduced her to Amora.

Introductions were a little awkward but other than that, it was fine. At first, she thought that Amora seemed alright. With her long blonde hair, high cheekbones, and intense stare, she could see why Trip was so enamored with her. She was pretty and was constantly smiling and Natasha thought that she seemed like a good match for her brother. Trip and his new girlfriend said goodbye and left to go find a place to eat their lunch together. She turned to her friends and watched as they stared after Amora.

She punched Clint on the arm and he turned to her and smirked, "Trip's lucky."

She rolled her eyes and saw Steve and Bucky nod in agreement. She let out a breath, "Have you guys ever heard of her?"

Her three friends shook their heads and Bucky spoke up, "I've seen her around but I've never talked to her."

She let the conversation flow away from Trip's new girlfriend but kept thinking about Amora. Something seemed a little off about her. Her smile was a little _too_ bright and now that she thought about it, her high-pitched voice sounded a little _too_ happy. She didn't want to seem paranoid but she thought that maybe she should ask around. Trip was her brother and she wanted him to be happy, so she would ask a couple of questions and if everything seemed alright, she would back off.

With her mind made up, she looked for Bobbi after school. Usually Bobbi would drive home with Hunter like she and Trip normally did but now that she had an afterschool job, their rides were less frequent together.

She craned her neck and spotted Bobbi standing in front of her locker, shoving books into her already bulging backpack.

She jogged over to the older girl and smiled, "Hey Bobbi."

Bobbi shoved the last of her notebooks into her bag and looked up with a smile on her pretty face, "Hey Tasha, what's up?"

She tried to think of how she could jump into her question about Amora. Bobbi was pretty straightforward, just like her, so she thought that it would be best to not beat around the bush, "What do you think of Amora?"

Bobbi shouldered her backpack, closed her locker, and leaned against it, "She's alright, I guess."

Nat looked around and then leaned in, "No, I mean, what's she like? Is she good enough for my brother?"

Bobbi looked thoughtful for a moment, "I've only talked to her a couple of times but this girl in my trig class used to be her friend and she always talks about how much of a terrible friend she was. Said she was manipulative and made her do things she wasn't comfortable with. I don't know if any of that's true though."

"She seems a little off, doesn't she?"

Bobbi shrugged, "I'd have to get to know her better to say, but I don't think I'd ever want to be friends with her. Maybe Trip see's something we don't."

Nat mulled that over, "Maybe. Thanks Bobbi."

Bobbi grinned at her and waved, "No problem Nat. I've got to head out, see you tomorrow."

She waved back and watched Bobbi disappear down the hallway before turning and heading towards the student parking lot to meet up with Hunter and Trip.

* * *

A day or two after she was introduced to Amora, she was walking down the school hallway in the morning on her way to class and spotted Amora standing by a locker. She thought about it and decided that she ought to get to know the older girl a little better since she was going to be spending so much time with her brother.

She walked over and stopped beside Amora, "Hey."

The blonde shut her locker firmly and turned to her, "What?"

Nat raised an eyebrow. Amora's accusatory and semi-aggressive tone surprised her but she didn't let it show, "I just thought we should probably get to know each other a little better."

Amora stayed silent and stared at her. It was a little unnerving but she would be damned if she let Amora intimidate her.

Natasha put a hand on her hip and soldiered on, "You know, because you're dating my brother."

She didn't know why Amora was acting this way towards her, she had never even talked to her before! She couldn't think of a reason why the blonde would be mad at her but maybe this was all a big misunderstanding and they were getting off on the wrong foot.

She was going to be the bigger person and try to figure out what was going on between them and fix it, like a real adult. She was going to be so proud of herself if she pulled this off.

Amora was still silently staring at her so she let out a breath and tried again, "Maybe we could eat lunch together or something."

She was being so mature right now, she was ridiculously proud of herself. If it was anyone else, she would have snapped at them or walked away by now, but this was Trip's girlfriend so she was trying to be patient.

Amora smirked at her, "Listen, I'm going out with Trip, not you. We don't have to be friends."

She felt irritation flash through her and clenched her hands into fists, "Yeah but it'd be easier if we were."

Amora flicked her hair over her shoulder, "Whatever."

And with that, the blonde turned around and walked away.

Nat blinked and questioned whether that had actually happened or not. What was this girl's problem?

She gritted her teeth and walked to her classroom. Throughout the whole day, she seethed in anger. She waited until Hunter dropped them off and they were in front of their house alone before tugging on Trip's arm and stopping him from entering their house.

Her brother turned to her and gave her a questioning look, "What's up?"

Nat fidgeted from foot to foot. She didn't want it to seem like she hated Trip's girlfriend… but she did, and she didn't want Trip to take it personally, "Um, I talked to Amora today."

Trip smiled at her, "I know, she told me."

She raised an eyebrow, "She did?"

Nodding, her brother said, "Yeah, she said you guys really hit it off. I'm glad you guys like each other."

What?

"She said that?"

Trip nodded again and she was very, very confused, "Well, it seemed like she did _not_ like me."

Her brother shook his head, "She told me that she did. You must have gotten the wrong impression or something."

She didn't think that that was what had happened but she nodded half-heartedly anyways, "Okay, I probably did."

Trip gave her a wide smile, tugged on her hand, and opened the front door for them.

* * *

For the next few weeks, she tolerated Amora.

Trip was absolutely enamored with his new girlfriend and she had no idea why.

Amora was ridiculously kind when it came to Trip, she complimented him all the time, hung off of his every word, and was sweet as sugar around him. When Trip was there, Amora was kind and friendly towards her and it was so confusing because Amora turned into a whole different person when Trip wasn't around. In the absence of Trip, Amora would turn cold and indifferent.

Nat resented her. Every time she tried to bring up Amora's behavior with Trip, her brother would brush it off and tell her that she was reading the situation wrong.

Amora was definitely playing her and Trip and the sad thing was, he didn't even see it. She thought that he was smarter than that.

Since Trip wouldn't listen to her, she had decided to just let him figure out how rude his girlfriend was on his own. Amora couldn't keep up the façade forever and she was bound to crack and Nat was kind of excited to tell Trip that she was right.

One day after school, Trip brought Amora home to meet their mom and dad.

Amora had been sweet and innocent when she had met her mom. Her dad was still at work and would meet her later tonight at dinner. May seemed to like Amora and the two chatted for a little bit while she watched on with Skye on her lap. Her little sister seemed interested in Amora, she had whispered in Nat's ear that she thought Trip's girlfriend was pretty, but she was too shy to say anything to her.

By the time May stood up to go start dinner, Skye was sitting on the living room floor playing with her dolls and she was steadfastedly ignoring Amora's overly-cheerful voice. Trip was sitting by Amora and stood up with their mom, offering to help her get dinner started, and had left her and Skye alone with Amora.

She leaned back on the couch and started texting Clint and didn't even try to have a conversation with Amora. She knew that there was no point so she complained to Clint, like she had been for the last two weeks, and ignored Trip's girlfriend.

After a couple of minutes, she heard Skye's little voice and looked up, "Do you want to play with me?"

Skye had moved over to stand in front of Amora and was looking up at her hopefully. Nat knew that it had taken a lot of courage for the little girl to go over and talk to Amora and she hoped that the blonde would see that and change her attitude.

Apparently that was too much to wish for.

Amora didn't even look up from her cell phone, "No."

She started to sit up and saw Skye lift up her Rapunzel doll and offer her to Amora, "You could play with Rapunzel. She's very fun."

Amora finally glanced up at the little girl and Nat found herself standing up when she saw the look on the blonde's face. Amora's eyebrows were raised in agitation and she looked irritated. Nat moved over to distract Skye but before she could get to her sister, Amora spoke up, "I said no. I'm not a little kid, I don't play with dolls. Now run along."

She actually _shooed_ Skye away with her hands, like Skye was a dog or something.

Nat felt her anger boil over when she saw Skye's bottom lip tremble and her eyes fill up with tears. No one talked to her sister that way.

She stood in front of Skye and crossed her arms, "I don't know what your problem is but you need to get over it right now."

Amora raised an eyebrow, "I don't have a problem."

She felt Skye grab onto the back of her shirt and uncrossed her arms so that she could reach a hand back and pull Skye against her. She gave Amora an icy glare and couldn't help it when her voice rose, "You can be rude to me all you want, I really don't care, but don't you _dare_ talk to my sister that way. She was just trying to be nice."

Amora stood up and stepped towards her so that they were face to face and studied Nat for a few seconds before smirking, "Whatever."

Was that her answer to everything?!

Nat's irritation spiked and she tried to calm down, "What is _wrong_ with you? You're such a… a… a bitch! You're such a bitch!"

She knew name-calling wouldn't get her anywhere, Jiaying had told her that time and time again, and she felt kind of bad that she had sworn in front of Skye, but G _od_ , she needed to get that off of her chest. Talking to Amora was like talking to an icy, blank, wall. The girl didn't listen and she just wanted to say _something_ that would make the blonde react.

The flash of shock that crossed Amora's face was worth it.

It looked like Amora was going to say something but just then, Trip walked back into the living room with a confused look on his face, "What's going on?"

Amora turned to him and Nat could see the exact second that her mask slipped back into place. She turned back into the nice, sweet girlfriend when Trip was around.

Amora walked over to Trip, threw her arms around him, and buried her face against his neck, "I was just sitting there and your sister called me a bitch! I don't even know what I did!"

Trip gave her a sharp look, "Natasha! What's wrong with you?"

What. The. Hell.

This could not be happening. She wasn't about to let Amora play her brother again, he needed to know the truth, "She's lying Trip! How can you not see how _mean_ she is when you aren't around?"

Amora pulled away from Trip and turned to glare at her. Nat glared right back and heard Trip say, "What are you talking about?"

She threw her hands up in exasperation, "She almost made Skye _cry._ You need to dump her, she's not a good person Trip."

Amora let out an indignant sound, "I am a good person."

Nat threw her a disbelieving look and then stared at Trip. He _needed_ to listen to her.

She felt Skye let go of her shirt and move to stand in front of her. She put her hands on Skye's shoulders and watched as her little sister raised a hand and pointed at Amora, "She's mean, I don't like her."

Skye leaned heavily into her legs and Nat squeezed her shoulders comfortingly. She was proud that her little sister had been brave enough to speak up.

Trip looked back and forth from her to Skye before turning to Amora, "You almost made my little sister cry?"

Amora shook her head but stayed silent.

Trip put a hand on the small of her back and led Amora through the living room and out the front door, "We need to talk."

Trip's grave tone led her to believe that Amora would _not_ be making another appearance at their house and she couldn't help but feel a little victorious.

She felt a tug on her hand and looked down at Skye. Her little sister was staring the front door with a concerned look on her face, "Is Amora still going to be Trip's girlfriend?"

She shrugged, "I don't know, I guess we'll find out."

Skye tugged on her hand until she leaned down so that her little sister could whisper in her ear, "I said mean things."

Nat turned her head so that she could whisper into Skye's ear, "I did too."

She reached over and intertwined their pinkies and looked up when the front door opened up and Trip walked towards them a few minutes later. She noted that Amora was nowhere to be seen.

They both straightened up and Trip stopped in front of them. Nat gave him a questioning look, "What happened?"

Her brother rubbed his hand over the back of his neck, "I think we broke up."

She didn't know how someone wasn't _sure_ if they broke up be she wasn't going to question this blessing, "I'm sorry."

Skye piped up, "Me too."

Trip gave them a sheepish grin, "Is it bad that I don't feel extremely upset about this?"

Nat didn't know what to say so she just reached out and squeezed his arm in what she hoped was a comforting manner.

Trip smiled at her and then leaned down a little so that he was closer to Skye, "How about from now on my girlfriends get the Skye stamp of approval?"

Her little sister nodded eagerly and held up her Rapunzel doll, "Do _you_ want to play with me?"

Trip took the doll from Skye, "I'd love to."

* * *

What'd you guys think? Idk if I got Amora's characterization right but it was kind of fun to write out a not-so-nice character! Leave me a review and tell me your thoughts :)

Thank you for reading! xx -Ariel


	17. Skye Meets May's Mother

**Hey guys! This was inspired by tumblr user Beanie0700's prompt: 'Skye meets May's mother' I hope you like it :)**

 **This was actually the second most voted for prompt. The most voted for prompt was 'Skye figures out she's good with computers' and I honestly have no idea how to write that out. If any of you have any suggestions or would be willing to help me out a little bit, I would greatly appreciate it. I want that chapter to be awesome since so many people voted for it and I want to do them justice :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye sat silently at the dining room table, just like Natasha and Trip, and watched as her mom and dad talked back and forth. They sounded tense and Skye thought that it would just be better to stay quiet and listen so that was what she did.

Phil agitatedly rubbed a hand over his face, "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

She looked over to May to hear her answer. Her mom sighed, "I didn't _know_ sooner. She _just_ called me! If I would have known sooner, I would have told you!"

Skye quickly looked back over to Phil and so did her siblings. I was kind of like watching a tennis match.

Her dad looked stressed out, "She a _lways_ does this!"

Skye was so confused. She had no idea who her mom and dad were talking about and she was starting to feel restless. Her parents had never really fought in front of her before. Was this even a fight? She didn't know but she didn't like it.

She grabbed onto Nattie's thigh and leaned over so that she could whisper to her, "Are they mad at each other?"

Her sister looked down, gave her a reassuring look, shook her head, and looked back over to their mom.

She hoped that Natasha was right. She didn't want May and Phil to be mad at each other. She liked it when everyone was happy.

"I don't know what you want me to say Phil. She's coming and if you want to tell her to wait and come at a better time, then go for it but you're on your own."

She looked over to her dad and saw him let out a breath and shake his head, "No, of course I won't say that. It's just, some warning would be nice."

Her mom nodded in sympathy, "Believe me, I know."

Skye was still confused but she had gathered that someone was coming over and it was stressing her parents out.

She _really_ wanted to know what was going on, "Who's coming over?"

Her parents jerked their heads to look out her and it seemed like they had forgotten that she was there. Phil gave May a look that clearly said that it was up to her to answer so her mom gave Phil an irritated look and forced a smile onto her face, "My… mother."

Wait, what?

Skye sat back. The thought of May having a mother had never really crossed her mind but it made sense. Of _course_ May had a mom, she had just never heard her talk about her before.

Skye raised her eyebrows, "Your mom's coming? To visit?"

May nodded, "She's visiting us for the day tomorrow."

A new thought occurred to her, "Wait! If she's your mom… does that mean she's my grandma?"

Her mom nodded again and Skye felt happiness rush through her. She had a grandma! The idea of having a grandmother was kind of foreign to her, she had mainly just wanted a mom and dad, but now that she already had that… a grandma sounded wonderful.

She smiled real big and abandoned her chair in favor of May's lap, "How come she hasn't visited before?"

Her mom seemed to consider that before answering, "Well… she works a lot and lives far away from us so it's hard for her to come see us."

She heard Phil mutter under his breath but it was too soft for her to understand what he was saying. She ignored him and clapped her hands together, "I'm so excited, I never thought I'd have a grandma!"

May's smile looked a little force and it seemed like she was going to say something but Skye hopped off of her lap and walked back to her seat, softly chanting, "Grandma's coming over! Grandma's coming over!"

As she sat down, Phil got her attention, "Skye, I don't think that Lian is-"

She continued to stare at him with a smile on her face but his sentence faded out and he stopped talking. He stared at her for a second and she smiled a little bigger, "What daddy?"

Phil glanced at Trip and Natasha before turning back to her, "Nothing. Grandma's coming over tomorrow."

* * *

Skye had this idea of grandmother's in her head. From the books she's read and the television shows she's seen, she knew what they were supposed to be like. Grandma's were supposed to be nice and kind, they made a lot of food, and gave you hugs all the time. They were small and old and always smelt nice. She hoped that _her_ grandma was like the one in Mulan because she was funny.

She eagerly woke the next morning feeling excited and a little nervous. She hoped that her grandma liked her.

She carefully picked out her clothes, she wanted to make a good impression, before grabbing some hair-ties and sneaking into Nattie's room. It was still dark out and she could see that her sister was still sleeping but this was important so she hoped that Natasha wouldn't be mad that she was waking her up so early.

She stood on the side of the bed and poked Nattie's cheek, "Nattie! I need you to braid by hair."

Her sister groaned and rolled towards her. Natasha opened up one eye and looked at her before squeezing it shut again and snuggling deeper into her blankets, "Go back to sleep Skye."

She huffed, "I can't, Grandma's coming over today! I need you to braid my hair!"

Natasha let out a big breath and blearily opened her eyes, "Your hair looks fine маленькая звезда. Please go back to sleep."

She looked around the dark room and sighed. Today her _Grandma_ was coming over and it was important and she wanted to look nice. Her sister didn't get it.

Natasha reached an arm towards her, "She won't be here until ten and that's _hours_ away. I promise, I'll braid your hair when I wake up."

She thought about Nattie's offer and shrugged before climbing into her sister's bed and snuggling close. She felt Natasha wrap an arm around her waist and she tucked her head under her sister's chin and rested it on her chest. She thought that she was too excited to fall asleep but apparently she was wrong because it only took a couple of minutes after Natasha's breathing had deepened out for hers to do the same.

* * *

The rest of her family didn't seem to be as excited as she was.

Of course they looked happy that May's mom was coming over but they didn't seem to be as giddy as she was.

Natasha had braided her hair like she had promised and she had eaten breakfast with her family, who had all expertly evaded her questioning about her grandma. Every time she asked them something about her, they would either vaguely answer her or change the subject. Skye couldn't figure out why but she didn't let their weirdness bring her down.

Her grandma was going to be here any minute and she couldn't sit still.

She was nervous and excited at the same time and May was watching her as she wiggled around on the couch, "Is she here yet?"

May sighed and said for the fourth time, "When she gets here, she'll knock on the door, remember?"

Skye nodded absentmindedly and stared intensely at the door. She heard her mom sigh a _gain_ and felt gentle hands land on her shoulder and nudge her so that she was facing May, "Skye."

She stared at May's kind face and waited for her to say more, "I know you're excited-"

Skye cut her off, "Super excited!"

Her mom grinned a little, "Sorry, super excited. I just… don't want you to get your hopes up too high."

She scrunched up her nose, "What do you mean?"

May paused before taking a breath and squaring her shoulders, "I mean that my mother isn't really like me or your dad. She's not as… she's not… I mean she's…"

Her mom was struggling with her words. Natasha piped up from where she was laying sprawled out on the floor, "Warm and fuzzy?"

May shot her a look, "Right. She's not warm and fuzzy."

Skye crinkled her forehead, "She's not nice?"

Her mom quickly shook her head, "Of course she's nice! She just… has trouble showing it sometimes."

She thought that through. Sometimes she had trouble showing and explaining what she was thinking, it had become less hard ever since she had started having regular sessions with Jiaying, but maybe her grandma was like that.

She swallowed, "Do you think she'll like me?"

May reached forward and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. Her mom gave her a reassuring look and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "She'll love you."

Skye let out a breath of relief, "Okay, then she's perfect."

May hugged her close and Skye smiled into her shoulder. They leaned apart when they heard a knock on the door and Skye smiled excitedly, "She's here."

May stood up and Skye held onto her hand as they made their way to the front door. Phil, Natasha, and Trip walked behind them and Skye started to feel nervous. May said that her mother would like her and she trusted May but she couldn't help but feel anxious about meeting someone new, especially someone as important as her _grandmother_.

Her mom opened up the front door and Skye leaned into her legs. As the door opened up, it revealed a short-ish lady with dark, short hair and dark eyes. She had on pretty earrings and Skye could see her eyes moving around the room, taking everyone in. She had a hard look on her face and Skye thought that if she saw her in the mall, she would be a little afraid of her, but this was her grandma so she just wrapped an arm around May's thigh and smiled at her.

Natasha stepped by her and hugged May's mom, "Hey Grandma."

Her sister stepped back so that Trip could give their grandma a quick hug and then the older lady stepped back and studied her siblings, "Natasha, Antoine, you look taller."

Trip chuckled, "We are taller and Grandma, _please_ just call me Trip."

Her grandma gave Trip a stern look, "Antoine is a good, strong name."

Trip just grinned and stepped back so that May could reach forward and give Grandma a hug, "Mom, how was the drive?"

Her grandma raised an eyebrow, "Long."

May just nodded and Phil stepped forward and awkwardly leaned in for a quick one-armed hug, "Lian, how've you been?"

Grandma walked further into the house and everyone followed after her. It was almost like s _he_ was the one who lived here, not them, "Work keeps me busy."

Grandma sat down on the couch. Nattie sat down beside her and Trip sat down on the end of the couch. Phil collapsed into a chair and May followed him into another one. She climbed onto her mom's lap and leaned back against her chest once she felt arms wrap around her waist.

It was quiet until Grandma waved an arm around, "Well?"

Phil looked around and everyone gave each other questioning looks until Grandma let out a breath and continued, "Aren't you going to introduce me?"

May jumped a little in her seat and when she spoke, her voice was a little louder than normal, "Oh! I'm so sorry sweetie." Her mom was giving her an apologetic look and Skye just shook her head so May continued talking, "Mom, this is Skye."

She waved shyly, "Hi."

Grandma studied her for a few seconds before nodding, "Skye's a strong name."

She smiled proudly, "Thanks, I chose it myself."

Grandma gave her a firm nod and Skye thought that she saw her lips twitch up a little bit and that made her feel even prouder.

* * *

She had thought that the day would have been different seeing as how her grandma was visiting, but it was just like any other weekend day. They all hung out at home, ate a lot of food, watched t.v., and Skye coerced whoever she could into playing with her.

It had been hours since Grandma had walked through the door. Her grandma had questioned Nattie and Trip about their school, sports, and social life. She had answered questions about what she was learning in class and her friends. Now they were all sitting around the dining room table finishing up lunch and Skye was anxiously jiggling her foot.

"Can we go to the playground?"

May turned to her, "Your grandma's here Skye, we can go tomorrow."

Skye sat back in her chair and let out a disappointed breath. She wanted to go run around.

Grandma turned to her mom and raised an eyebrow, "Are you saying I can't go to the playground?"

May shook her head, "No, I just thought-"

Raising a hand, Grandma silenced May and looked over to her, "Let's go to the playground Skye."

She eagerly jumped up from her seat and grinned, "Yes!"

Everyone else stood up to follow them but Grandma waved her hands at them and motioned for them to sit back down again, "Just me and Skye."

She looked around and saw that everyone else looked stunned for a second before sitting back down. She glanced over and saw that her mom was giving her an encouraging nod so she moved over to grab onto Grandma's hand and tugged her out the door.

Once they started walking down the street and towards the playground, Skye squinted up at Grandma, "Why don't you visit more often?"

Grandma kept her eyes straight ahead and said, "I don't have much time off of work."

Skye pondered that, "Why not?"

"Because I like working and it's important to me."

"Why?"

Grandma finally looked down at her, "Because it is."

Skye scrunched up her nose, "Aren't we important to you?"

Grandma's face went hard and Skye thought that she said something wrong but she wasn't really sure what it was. They were quiet for a little while before Grandma stopped her and put a hand under her chin so that she could guide her to look up and into Grandma's face, "You guys are very important to me."

Skye tilted her head, "If we're important, then why do we never see you?"

Grandma moved her hand up to caress her cheek, "You're right, I'll make more time to come and visit. Family is important."

"I'm…right?"

Grandma nodded at her and continued walking towards the playground, "Yes, don't sound so surprised. You're very smart, don't forget that."

It sounded like a command so Skye straightened up, "Yes ma'am."

She couldn't help but smile. Her Grandma thought that she was smart.

* * *

"Please don't go."

Skye was gripping onto Grandma's shirt sleeve because she didn't want her to walk out the door. She couldn't believe that it was already time for her to go.

Phil wrapped a hand around her arm but she shook him off and threw her arms around Grandma's waist, "Don't leave Grandma, stay with us please."

She felt Grandma's hands wrap around her in a quick hug before she was gently pushed away, "I can't stay, I have-"

Skye cut her off with an unhappy groan, "Work. You have work."

Grandma gave her a stern look, "Yes, but how about we plan for you to come and stay with me for a weekend?"

Skye jumped up and down excitedly, "Like a sleepover?"

Nodding, Grandma gave her a small smile, "Yes, how does that sound?"

She leaned forward for another hug, "That sounds good."

Grandma nodded again, "Then it's settled. Goodbye my Skye."

Forcing a smile on her face, she said, "Bye Grandma."

Skye watched as everyone said goodbye and Grandma got into her car. She waved until the car turned down the street and she couldn't see her anymore.

She looked towards her parents, "She said that she was going to visit more often."

Phil gave her a forced-looking smile before walking back into the house muttering, "Maybe she'll call ahead next time."

She raised an eyebrow and looked over to her mom, "Does daddy like Grandma?"

May took her hand and led her inside, "Of course he does. That's just how they express their love towards each other."

Skye nodded even though she didn't really understand it, "I like Grandma."

May smiled at her, "She likes you too."

* * *

What'd you guys think? We didn't see much of Lian in AoS so I didn't have much to work with personality-wise but I like how she turned out :) I gave her and Phil the classic in-law relationship and it was pretty fun to write out.

Thank you so much for reading and if you have any ideas as to how I could write out the chapter about Skye figuring out she's good with computers, I would really, really, appreciate it! xx -Ariel


	18. Skye Has A Knack For Computers

**Hey guys! This was based off of Oceans19's prompt about Skye figuring out she's good with computers. Thanks to everyone who sent in suggestions! They helped me out a lot! I hope you like it :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next on the poll. Thanks for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye still hadn't found something that she was passionate about and sometimes that made her a little sad.

She saw how much Nattie loved dancing and how happy Trip was when he was running around playing football. Both of her parents talked about their jobs with such enthusiasm and happiness that it made her wish that she had found that thing that she was passionate about so that she could talk that way.

She was good at learning math and reading, she was okay at riding a bike, she liked playing with her dolls, and she could name every Spongebob character on the whole show. All of those things were cool but they weren't things that she absolutely _loved_ doing. It wasn't the same as when she watched her sister dance. She could clearly see how _involved_ and _proud_ Nattie was when she was dancing. Skye wanted something like that.

She had kind of given up on finding that thing until Ms. Hill had allowed them to go the computer lab at school. The computer lab was supposed to be for the fourth and fifth graders but it was raining and the school was allowing the younger students to go in there and play games because they couldn't go outside and play.

Skye had walked into the room hand-in-hand with Jemma and Fitz and they had all crowded around one computer. Fitz immediately grabbed the mouse and clicked a button, pulling up a fun looking game that looked like a pinball machine.

Skye stared at the computer.

It was _big._ It was nothing like the computers that her family had at home. Natasha's laptop was tiny, so was everyone else's in her family, but this one wasn't. It kind of looked like those old televisions that had been in the orphanage but a little smaller.

She scrunched her nose up, "This is a computer? Why is it so big?"

Fitz ignored her in favor of playing his game but Jemma turned to her, "They're old."

"They do everything that laptops do, right?"

Jemma tilted her head and considered the question, "Yeah, just slower."

Skye pointed to the giant rectangle that was on the floor beneath the computer. They were attached by wires and the rectangle was humming. She didn't know if it was supposed to be doing that.

She pointed to the rectangle, "What's that?"

Jemma glanced at it and shrugged before focusing her attention back on Fitz's game.

Skye sighed and slid off her of chair. She crawled under the table, sat down on the floor, and leaned in to study the rectangle. There were lights blinking on it and she saw the wires that attached it to the computer. She made sure not to get tangled up in those and stared at the buttons. She reached forward and pressed the button with a half-circle on it.

She let out a breath when nothing happened. That was boring.

She heard Fitz make a disgruntled sound, "Hey! What happened?"

Skye crawled out from under the table and looked up, "What?"

He pointed to the dark computer screen, "It turned off."

She shrugged and guiltily looked back and forth before crawling back under the table and pressing the button again. It took a couple of seconds but she heard Fitz make a happy sound and assumed that the computer turned back on.

She wanted to know more. She wanted to figure out what made computers work the way they did and how everything connected. How did computers know everything? What made them tick? She wanted to know _everything_.

* * *

When she got home that day, she asked Natasha if she could see her laptop and her sister readily agreed.

She watched as Nattie started up her computer and typed in a password before a picture of Natasha and her friends appeared as the background. Skye grinned as she saw Clint, Bucky, Steve and Nat's silly faces before asking Nattie to show her how to work everything.

Her sister pointed to an icon, "This gets you to the internet."

Skye moved the mouse and clicked on it. Google appeared and she smiled.

Natasha pressed a few things on the keyboard and a website popped up. She clinked on a link and a game with Spongebob appeared on the screen. Skye made a happy sound and listened to the voice that was coming through the speakers that was telling her how to play.

She played the game for a couple of seconds before taking her fingers away from the keyboard and looking over to her sister, "How did they make this game?"

Nattie raised an eyebrow, "A bunch of programmers made it."

Programmers sounded cool. They could make games and she wanted to know how, "Programmers?"

Her sister nodded at her, "A bunch of people who make everything… happen. I don't know, sorry Skye."

Skye just shook her head and gave Nattie a smile before turning back to the laptop and playing around with it until her mom called her and told her it was time to start her homework.

She thanked her sister for letting her play with her computer and ran downstairs and towards the dining room table where May was waiting for her with her backpack already on the table. She skidded to a stop beside her mom, "I want to learn something new."

May raised an eyebrow, "How about we learn something new _after_ you finish your vocabulary worksheet?"

Skye let out a breath, "I want to learn about computers."

May handed her a pencil and motioned for her to sit in a seat, which she did, "You want to learn about computers?"

Skye nodded eagerly, "Yes."

Her mom pushed her vocabulary worksheet towards her and Skye grabbed it but didn't look at it. She waited for May to answer, "Alright. We'll learn about computers _after_ you finish your vocabulary."

Skye sighed but quickly finished her worksheet. She needed some help from her mom but that was just because the words were hard. Spelling wasn't as hard for her as it used to be.

She pushed her worksheet over to May and impatiently waited for her mom to look over it and give her an approving nod, "I wanna learn about computers now."

May stared at her for a couple of seconds before nodding, getting up, and disappearing out of the room only to return a minute later with her laptop in hand, "Let's see what we can find out. I think you know more about computers than I do."

They watched some videos on Youtube that showed her what the inside of computers looked like and how everything worked. They watched people explain how to program things and listened as they said words that were hard to understand and she was so confused about everything but she loved it.

After a while, May looked at her and smiled, "Learn enough?"

Skye shook her head, "I want to know more."

* * *

Her parent's technological knowledge was subpar at best and that was how she ended up at the Computer Science, Programming, and Coding lecture at their local community college with Phil. It was for the whole community to come and listen to but Skye saw that most of the people who were here were way older than her. She was definitely the youngest one here.

She tightened her grip on Phil's hand as he led her through the room and towards some empty seats. She climbed onto her seat and folded her legs underneath her so that she was a little taller, hoping that would help her see the stage.

She looked over to her dad and grinned at him, "I'm excited. Thanks for taking me daddy."

He smiled back at her, "No problem kiddo."

They waited patiently for the lecture to start. Well, Phil waited patiently while she played with her fingers and looked around eagerly. She wanted it to begin already.

A lady scooted past her and sat on Phil's other side. Skye studied her and noted that she had thick framed glasses, long wavy black hair, and a pretty smile that was aimed towards her. The lady turned her smile to Phil and said, "Couldn't find a babysitter?"

Before her dad could answer, the lady turned back to her, "Don't worry hun, these lectures are actually pretty interesting."

The lady was still smiling at her so Skye shyly smiled back.

Phil wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "Actually, my daughter was the one who wanted to come here. I'm just the chauffer."

The lady looked surprised for a moment before reaching out and offering Skye her hand, "That's great! I'm Kat, let me know if you have any questions! I'm the lecturer's assistant." She sheepishly shook her pen around, "I'm here to take some notes for us to review later."

Skye excitedly shook her hand and gave her a more confident smile, "Hi, I'm Skye. Thank you!"

She felt herself relax a little. She still felt a little weird about being the only kid in the whole room but no one was staring at her or giving her funny looks, they were all just sitting around and quietly chatting with the people they were sitting next to. She liked it here.

Kat leaned back in her seat, "What made you want to come to the lecture? Have you been to one before?"

Skye shook her head. She looked to her dad and once he gave her an encouraging nod, she took a breath and said, "No, I want to learn about computers. They're cool. I wanna be a programmer!"

Kat nodded seriously, "Then you've come to the right place. This is an introductory lecture so it's pretty watered down but I think it'll be interesting for you. Hopefully you'll like it."

Kat was smiling again, she seemed to do that a lot, and Skye felt her enthusiasm build. She knew that her interest in computers was a little weird, her family hadn't said anything about it, they had just encouraged her curiosity, but she knew it was odd. Kat was making her feel better. She was treating her like an adult and Skye liked that.

The lights dimmed a little and Skye sat back in her seat and stared intensely at the stage. A man was standing in front of a podium. He had on a brown jacket and blonde hair, "Hey guys, I'm John. If you were here last week, you probably recognize me. Hopefully you do." He was interrupted by soft laughter coming from around the room and Skye didn't know what was funny so she stayed quiet.

"Last week we talked about computational frameworks and writing out small sized programs. Today we're going to kick it up a notch and talk about writing out medium sized programs."

Someone from the back cheered and everyone turned to see where the sound came from. John laughed, "I know, it's some exciting stuff. Let's get started."

Skye would like to say that she understood everything that John taught them over the course of two hours but honestly…she had no idea what he was saying. He threw out gigantic words and talked about things she'd never even heard of. She watched as he showed them examples on the giant screen that was on the board behind him and listened intensely as he explained how to work out problems even though she had no idea what was going on.

She was so confused but she _loved_ it.

She didn't know why she was so interested in these things but she was. The big words confused her, the names to the parts of the computer were foreign to her, and ninety-nine percent of the time she had no idea what was going on, but rather than getting frustrated, she just felt more curious.

Once the lecture ended, Phil turned to her, "You like it?"

She nodded and heard Kat say, "What'd you think Skye?"

She unfolded her feet from beneath her, they felt like they were numb, and shook them out, "I liked it, I wanna learn more."

Kat stood up and straightened her glasses, "Come back next week, same time."

Skye's eyes widened, "Really?" Kat nodded and Skye turned to Phil, "Can we come back?"

Phil took her hand and they all stood up. She stretched her legs and Phil shook her hand to get her attention, "Sure sweetie."

Skye jumped up and down, "Yes!"

She had no idea what she was doing, she had trouble wrapping her head around the concept of computers and programming, she had so much to learn, but she was so happy. She had _finally_ found something that she was passionate about. She loved computers like Nattie loved dancing and her mom loved being a physical therapist.

She wanted to go home and watch more videos. Maybe she could learn enough to figure out what John had been talking about all this time. She said goodbye to Kat and tugged on Phil's hand, "Come on daddy, let's go home. I wanna watch more videos."

Phil led her out of the building and towards the car, "Don't you want a little computer break?"

She shook her head, "No, will you watch them with me?"

She watched as Phil grimaced and then forced a smile onto his face, "Sure sweetheart."

She swung their hands back and forth, "Yes!"

* * *

What'd you guys think? I didn't think that a 6 year old would be able to randomly start coding or something so I hope this wasn't disappointing! I know nothing about computers (sometimes i have trouble uploading new chapters) so I hope I don't sound too ridiculous :)

Thank you so much for reading! An extra thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, or taken the time to leave me a review :) You're beautiful angels xx -Ariel


	19. Skye Gets Lost

**Hey guys! I'm so sorry but I can't find the person who sent this in so if it was you, thank you so much! The prompt was: 'Skye gets lost.'**

 **So I know that I mentioned writing a sequel to You Can Trust Me a little earlier on and I'm still pretty confident that I'll be doing that but with college starting up again soon and all of these one-shot prompts that I have waiting to be written out, I think that I might hold off for a little while. It'll probably just be until the semester starts and I grow accustomed to my new workload and everything. Don't worry, it'll happen! :)**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Why didn't daddy want to come with us?"

May rearranged their hands so that their fingers were intertwined and looked down at her, "Your daddy doesn't like to shop for clothes. He thinks it's boring."

On some level, Skye could agree with that. Sometimes shopping _was_ boring but other times it was pretty fun. It was nice to look at all the cool clothes and find new toys so she didn't mind shopping too much.

Skye looked up at the giant Dillard's sign that was hanging on the archway that they walked under to get into the store. She saw a bunch of different clothes, some were hanging up and some were folded onto display counters. Her mom walked over to the side and grabbed a shopping cart. May let go of her hand so that she could control the cart and leaned down to put her into it but Skye held up a hand, "I don't want to sit in the cart."

Her mom raised an eyebrow. Skye knew that she always sat in the cart, it was the only way that she was one hundred percent confident that she wouldn't get lost or separated from her family, but she had been sitting in class all day and she wanted to walk around.

She shrugged, "I'm tired of sitting."

Her mom nodded and reached down so that she could guide Skye's hand and place it onto the cart, "Alright, just keep a hand on the cart okay?"

Skye grinned and tightened her hold on the shopping cart, "Okay."

In the last few months, she had grown a little bit and now needed shoes that would fit her feet, which was why she was shopping with her mom. May said that she needed new jeans so they had come to Dillard's with a goal. Of course, after completing their goal, they got a little distracted.

Skye threw her cool new boots and sneakers on top of her mom's new jeans into the cart and grabbed onto the side of it. May was browsing through some shirts and Skye was starting to get a little bored. She wanted to go home and hang out with Nattie or play with her dolls.

She glanced around the store. There were less people roaming around than there normally were when they came to the mall and she was glad about that. She was way too short to see above the displays so all she could see were rows of clothing hanging off of racks and a bunch of plastic mannequins. The mannequins didn't have faces and she didn't like them. It was like she was in some weird maze. She wished she was taller.

Her mom walked over to a different display and checked out the shirts that were there. Skye dutifully walked beside her and stayed by the cart as her mom walked a few steps away to circle around the display.

Skye let out a sigh of boredom and looked around again, hoping there was _something_ in here that would be able to distract her. She let her eyes move past the creepy cluster of mannequins and the nice looking old lady that was pushing her cart towards the shoe section. She squinted when something purple caught her eye.

A little distance away, there was a purple and pink shirt with Rapunzel's smiling face on it. She didn't know why it was there since they were in the adults section and it was clearly a kid's shirt, but Skye didn't really care. She could see a plastic tiara that was attached to the shirt's hanger and she wanted to go see it. She knew that if she asked nicely, her mom would probably get it for her.

She looked back over to May and saw that her mom was in the same spot as before. Without really thinking about it, Skye let go of the cart and walked over to the Rapunzel shirt. She was pretty confident that her mom would be where she had left her so she only felt a little nervous when she realized how far away from May she was.

She stopped in front of the shirt and grinned at it. It was pretty and up close, Skye could see that it had sparkles on it and ruffles on the bottom. Rapunzel's face was smiling back at her and Skye could see that the tiara that was attached to the shirt was also purple and pink like the shirt and had pink gems all over it.

She grabbed onto the shirt and tugged but it wouldn't budge. Frowning, she tugged on it again but it still didn't move and she was too short to lift the hanger off of the display.

She let out a breath and determinedly held onto the shirt with both hands and pulled. She felt it give away and lost her balance.

She fell backwards and landed on her butt with an, "Oomph!"

Letting out a breath, she stood up and smiled triumphantly at the shirt. The top of the hanger was cracked but she didn't really care, she had the shirt _and_ the tiara. She turned around and skipped back to where she left May.

Once she got there, she skidded to a stop and looked around. She didn't see her mom.

May wasn't there.

She _knew_ this was where May had been because she remembered that dark blue shirt. Her mom had been staring at it and Skye had just wanted to grab it and put it in the cart for her because she _knew_ May was going to end up buying it, she just didn't know why it took so long for her to come to that same conclusion.

Panic flashed through her and she anxiously called out, "Mommy?"

When she didn't hear a response, she told herself to calm down and stamped down her growing panic. May couldn't be far away, she knew her mom would never lose her on purpose. She was probably just looking at shirts at the next display over.

Dropping her Rapunzel shirt, she zig-zagged through the shirts hanging in front of her and hopefully looked around, praying that her mom would be standing in front of her with a disapproving look on her face. She didn't even care that May might be mad at her for wandering away, she just wanted her to be there.

She let out a whimper when she didn't see anyone, just a bunch of button-up blouses folded neatly on a table. Turning around in a circle, Skye tried looking for May but she couldn't see anything other than the dumb shirts hanging in her way. She was too short.

"Mommy?" When no one answered her again, she couldn't control her panic any longer.

She was lost.

Skye felt like her chest was hollow and she could feel her breathing start to pick up. Desperately looking around, she saw a walkway and eagerly moved towards it so that she could get away from the clothes.

Once she was standing on the walkway, she jogged down it, turning her head back and forth and peering from side to side, hoping to find May. She didn't want to wander too far away from the section that she had last seen May in just in case her mom was still in that general area. With that in mind, she ran up and down the same stretch of walkway three times before spotting a shopping cart sitting in the middle of two different display tables.

Seeing that it was half-full and hoping that it was her shopping cart, she cautiously approached it. When she got to the cart, she called out, "Mommy?"

Disappointment flared through her when she didn't hear a response and she jumped in surprise when she heard someone from behind her say, "Are you lost?"

Turning around, she saw a tall, blonde lady staring at her. She looked young and was carrying a little boy who was way younger than Skye, maybe three years old. The little boy also had blonde hair, was sucking on a pacifier, and was waving his arms around. The little boy kept trying to grab onto his mom's earrings but she fended him off and continued to give Skye a concerned look.

She stayed quiet and the lady stepped around her and put the little boy into the cart before turning to her and smiling comfortingly, "My name's Lily, what's yours?"

Lily seemed nice but Skye really just wanted her mom and she would rather be talking to May than her. She missed her mom and she didn't like being alone.

She felt tears well up in her eyes and sniffled, "I'm not s'pposed to talk to strangers."

Lily nodded, "That's a good rule to follow."

Skye silently agreed with her and watched as Lily kneeled down in front of her, "Are you lost?"

The question made the tears in her eyes spill over, "Y-yes."

Lily gave her a sympathetic look, "Want me to help you look for your mommy?"

Skye wasn't sure if she was supposed to trust strangers. Lily was being kind and trying to help her and she didn't think that it could hurt to have someone else help her look for May so she nodded.

Lily straightened up and smiled at her, "Okay, if we go up to the registers, they can make an announcement and your mom can meet us up there. Want to walk there with me?"

She glanced around and thought about it. She didn't have any better options and Lily sounded really sure of her plan so Skye nodded again. Lily grabbed onto her cart and made sure that the little boy was secure in his seat before walking forward and motioning for Skye to follow her.

Skye fell into step next to Lily and the blonde glanced down at her, "You gonna tell me your name?"

Since she had decided to trust Lily, she didn't see why it could hurt to tell her her name, "Skye."

Lily smiled at her and pushed the cart around a curve, "That's a pretty name." Lily ran her hand over the little boy's blonde curls and looked back to her, "This is Jacob. Jake, that's Skye. Why don't you say hi?"

After some gentle prodding from Lily, Jacob waved a pudgy hand at her and Skye waved back. She reached up and wiped some tears off of her face and craned her neck so that she could see Lily's face, "They can find my mommy?"

Lily moved the cart around another curve and Skye saw a cluster of registers up ahead, "Yep, they'll call her name over the intercom and everyone in the whole store will be able to hear it so there's no way your mom won't hear it. They'll find her."

Lily's confidence comforted her and she looked up ahead towards the registers. She saw a familiar figure jog to the register from a different walkway. The figure started talking to a man standing behind the counter and was waving her hands around. Recognizing May, she straightened up and started running towards her.

Letting out a whimper of relief, she called out, "Mommy!"

Her mom turned towards her and she watched as she let out a breath of relief and hurried forward, "Skye!"

She leapt towards May and her mom caught her and hauled her close to her chest. She buried her face in the crook of May's neck and she felt her mom press her face into her hair. She knew she was still crying but she didn't even care, she was back with her mom and she was so relieved.

She leaned back a little in May's arms, "I was lost. I got lost and I couldn't find you."

May pressed a kiss to her forehead, then to her cheek, and then onto the tip of her nose, "I know, I was looking for you and-"

May was cut off by Lily's voice, "This is your mom Skye?"

She turned around and gave Lily a wobbly smile, "Yes."

The blonde nodded, "Okay, I just wanted to make sure."

May settled Skye so that she was supporting her with one arm and used to other one to reach out and grab onto Lily's arm, "Thank you for helping Skye."

Lily smiled brightly, "No problem. I hope someone would do the same if Jacob was ever lost."

With that, Lily gave them one last smile, turned around, and walked away.

Skye turned back and hugged herself close to her mom, "I was scared."

She felt May comb her fingers through her hair and the familiar action comforted her and she felt her tears stop, "I know sweetie. I was too."

She stayed pressed close to May and she honestly thought about never letting go again, "I think I'm going to sit in the cart from now on."

She heard May laugh but it sounded a little off, "If that's what you want."

Skye nodded and turned her head so that it was resting comfortably on May's shoulder, "It is."

* * *

What'd you guys think?

I'm so sorry that I can't find the person who submitted this prompt to me! I can't seem to find your name but thank you so much for submitting it! I hope you like it :) Thanks for reading! xx -Ariel


	20. Everyone Gets Sick

**Hey guys! This was inspired by TheMindOfBooks' prompt: 'it may be interesting to see a chapter where all three kids (or five if you want to include Wanda and Pietro) get sick or develop symptoms at different points of the same day.' It's not all in the same day but it's close and since I enjoy making writing harder for myself, I made it so all five of them are in here! Jk it was fun writing a sick Pietro :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like written out next! I think that after I post the next chapter, I'll put a new poll up because there are so many different options and I keep updating it. Let me know what you guys think about that!**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

It had all started with a little cough.

Wanda and Pietro had come home for a break and Wanda had brought a small cough with her. She said that it was just a little tickle in her throat and that it was nothing to be concerned about. They had all given her worried looks but she had brushed them off and convinced them that she was healthy enough to play in the backyard with everyone else.

At the end of the day, Skye had asked Wanda if she wanted to sleep in her bed because Phil _still_ hadn't fixed up a space for Wanda and Pietro to stay in when they came home and she was still bunking with Natasha. She knew that if you were sick, the people around you could get sick too, and she didn't want Nattie to get sick. After a couple of minutes of convincing, she had finally gotten Wanda to agree to sleep in her bed while she slept with Natasha.

Skye cuddled close to her sister. She liked sleeping with Nattie, it was way better than sleeping alone.

"Is Wanda sick?"

Natasha groaned a little and opened her eyes back up. She had gone still and Skye thought that she might have been asleep but she wasn't, "No, she'll be alright."

Skye thought about that, "What if she _is_ sick?"

Natasha pulled Skye closer and buried her head into her pillow. When she talked, her voice came out muffled, "Then we'll take her to the doctor. Go to sleep маленькая звезда."

She just grinned a little, burrowed into Natasha's side, and shut her eyes.

* * *

The next morning, she carefully got out of bed, making sure not to wake up her sister because she knew how grumpy Natasha got when she was woken up early, and made her way downstairs.

She sleepily rubbed her eyes as she walked into the kitchen and made her way over to Phil, who was softly singing terribly and making waffles. He didn't notice her so she tugged on his pajama pants until he reached down and picked her up.

He set her on his hip and went back to his waffles, "Hey sleepyhead, you slept later than you usually do."

She just shrugged and rested her head on his shoulder. He ran a hand over her hair, swayed from side to side, and stayed quiet while he finished making breakfast.

This was probably her favorite time of the day. Most mornings, she and Phil were always the first ones awake. They would always make breakfast together, sometimes she was more awake and they talked, but most days she was still sleepy so they just hung out together in silence. It was nice and Skye loved her mornings with her dad.

This morning they were alone for awhile, up until they finished with breakfast, then her mom wandered down the staircase and into the dining room. Her parents started talking about work and she contentedly listened to them as she fixed herself a plate. She had just finished pouring syrup onto her waffles when Wanda trudged towards them.

Usually Wanda was a morning person. She was the only one of them who didn't mind waking up early but this morning, she looked different. Her eyes still looked sleepy and the tip of her nose was red. Wanda always got dressed before she came downstairs, Skye didn't know why because her family was pretty lazy on the days that permitted them to be, but today she was wearing a big sweater, leggings, and her hair was in a messy bun. She looked sick.

Her oldest sister sat down and her parents gave Wanda worried looks. Her mom reached over and held her hand against Wanda's forehead, "How're you feeling sweetie?"

Wanda smiled but it looked a little forced and her voice sounded more gravelly than it normally did, "I'm alright, just a little sick."

Skye thought that she looked more than just a little sick but she didn't say anything about it.

Phil made Wanda a glass of orange juice and handed it to her, "Why don't you go back to sleep Wanda? It could help you feel better."

Wanda gratefully accepted the glass but waved her dad off, "I'm fine dad. I'm an adult, I can handle being sick."

Phil gave her a look and Skye spoke up, "Do you have to take medicine? Don't believe daddy when he says that it tastes like grape. It doesn't."

Wanda laughed while she shot her dad an apologetic look. It was _true_. Medicine tasted nasty.

"Thanks Skye, but I don't have to take that kind of medicine. I can take grown-up medicine."

Her mom started to stand up, "I can go get some for you. I think it's in the cabinet over the fridge."

Wanda held up a hand and May stopped, "I can get it mom, I'm not an invalid. Don't worry about me, I'm fine."

May looked unsure until Wanda pushed her chair back and headed into the kitchen. Skye shoved a forkful of waffles into her mouth and looked back up when she heard groaning. She glanced around and the groaning got closer until she saw Pietro walking their way.

He looked rough. His hair was messier than it usually was and he kept wiping his nose with his shirt sleeve. He stopped groaning when he collapsed into a chair and slumped over so that his forehead was resting against the table.

His face was pressed into the table so it was kind of hard to understand him when he said, "I'm sick."

Her dad just nodded, "We all knew that was coming. You and your sister are a package deal."

Wanda walked back into the room, glanced at her brother, shook some pills out of a bottle, and handed them to him, "Here."

Pietro straightened up and stared at the pills in his hand, "I don't wanna. I hate swallowing pills."

Wanda rolled her eyes and took her medicine while Pietro continued to stare at his, "Come on, you're a big boy, you can take your medicine."

She watched as her brother whined until Wanda reached over, took the pills out of his hand, and shoved them into his mouth. She covered his mouth with her hand so that he couldn't spit them out while she picked up a glass of water and held it to his lips. Pietro gave Wanda a dirty look but sipped from the glass and took his medicine.

Wanda smiled proudly, "There." Her voice turned mocking, "Who's a good boy? You are!"

Pietro let his head fall back down onto the table but not before frowning at his sister, "I'm not a baby Wanda."

Wanda smirked and grabbed a napkin from the table so that she could wipe her nose, "Then don't act like one, dummy."

Skye giggled and got up to put her plate into the sink. She went back into the dining room and sat on Phil's lap. She pulled his hands around her so that they wrapped around her waist and leaned into him, "What's wrong with you guys?"

Wanda glanced over to her, "I've got a runny nose, my throat hurts, and I'm pretty tired."

Pietro didn't even raise his head, he just lifted up a hand and waved it around for a second before letting it drop back onto the table, "Ditto."

Her dad spoke up, "Could be a cold or the flu."

Pietro groaned, "Whatever it is, it sucks."

Skye nodded seriously, "I'll take care of you guys."

Mat smiled at her from across the table, "That's nice Skye but you should stay away from them. You don't want to get sick, do you?"

She shook her head. She _hated_ being sick.

Wanda finished her glass of orange juice and looked over to her, "Thanks anyways Skye, we'll be fine."

* * *

Wanda and Pietro had pretty much isolated themselves to the second floor of the house. They said it was so that they didn't get anyone else sick but Skye thought it was because they didn't like people fussing over them. Wanda was a good sport about it but Pietro was getting easily annoyed when they hovered around him. They only came down every couple of hours to get food, water, or a hug from May or Phil.

Skye felt bad for them. She knew how terrible it was to be sick and she wanted to help them but every time she tried, her parents would tell her that she couldn't go near them. They didn't want her to catch whatever they had.

She was sitting on the floor in front of the couch playing with Alice and Mara. Trip and Nattie were sitting on the couch behind her, sharing a bowl full of pretzels and arguing over what to watch.

It was kind of funny to listen to them bicker over different shows. One would say why it was good and the other would tell them all the ways it was terrible. It was like a really funny debate.

Skye was listening to the pros and cons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Natasha thought that it was a cinematic masterpiece while Trip said that it was _old_ , when she heard a cough.

She whipped her head around and stared at Trip. He coughed into his hand and then looked from her to Natasha, "Crap."

Nattie scrambled away from him and slid off the couch and onto the floor next to her, "Dude! We've been eating the same food! You probably infected me."

Her sister wiped her hands on her pants like that could prevent the germs from getting on her. Skye didn't think it worked that way but what did she know?

Trip stood up, "I'm not sick!"

He ran into the kitchen and Nattie shouted after him, "What are you doing?"

"I'm washing my hands! I refuse to get sick!"

Her mom and dad walked downstairs and gave them questioning looks, "What's with the shouting?"

Skye shrugged, "Trip's sick even though he says he's not."

She heard Trip shout, "I'm not sick Skye! I'm not!"

She just shook her head and watched her parents exchange worried looks before Phil walked into the kitchen and May walked over to them, "Why don't you guys go outside?"

Natasha stood up and grabbed onto her hand, "Sounds good to me. Let's get away from all this sickness Skye."

Skye held onto Nattie's hand and let her sister guide her out back. They both sat on a swing and she looked over to Natasha, "Are we going to get sick next?"

Nattie looked over to her, "Nah, we're going to be fine."

That had been true… up until the next morning. She and her sister had felt alright throughout the day, all through dinner, and when they had fallen asleep next to each other in Nattie's bed. Wanda, Pietro, and Trip on the other hand, had all gotten progressively worse. The twins had stayed in bed all day and battled fevers while Trip had gained a sore throat and a headache.

By the end of the day, she had felt pretty confident that she wouldn't catch whatever sickness her siblings had. She had gone to sleep confident, so had Nattie, but had woken up with a scratchy throat and a stuffy nose.

She moaned, rolled over, and collided with Natasha. Her sister made an irritated noise and pulled the blankets close to her chest without waking up.

She sat up and took stock of how she felt. Besides her scratchy throat and stuffy nose, her body felt achey, her eyelids felt hot, and she was _tired_. Not just tired, but weary, like her bones were tired too.

She crawled out of bed, agitatedly shoved her hair out of her face, and made her way to her parent's room. When she opened their door, she saw that they were both sleeping soundly. She carefully climbed onto their bed and wiggled her way in between them before shutting her eyes and falling back asleep.

* * *

She woke up to a cool hand on her forehead.

Sometime during the night, she had shifted so that she was pressed close to her mom and had kicked the blankets off of her. She felt warm and her eyelids felt hot and her throat felt raw. She was sick for sure.

She reached up to rub her eyes and looked up and into the concerned face of her mom. May's hand was still on her forehead while the other one was rubbing her arm.

Her mom gave her a small smile, "Let me guess, you're sick too."

Skye nodded and looked around, "Where's daddy?"

May scooted back so that she was resting against the headboard and pulled Skye up so that she was leaning her head on her chest, "Holding Nat's hair back while she throws up."

Skye made a disgusted sound and her mom just laughed, "I guess everyone got the bug."

She scrunched up her forehead and pushed her face closer to May's chest before mumbling, "I hate bugs."

May combed her fingers through her hair and the familiar action made Skye's eyelids droop even further, "I'll go grab some medicine."

Skye shut her eyes and wrapped an arm around her mom's waist, trying to prevent her from leaving, "I hate medicine too."

Her mom chuckled and gently pushed her aside so that she could stand up and disappear from the room. Skye kept her eyes shut and ignored how every time she swallowed, it felt like her throat was on fire. She heard someone enter the room and only forced her eyes open when she felt the bed dip down beside her.

May was holding out a tiny measuring cup full of dark purple medicine and a glass of water. She shook her head, "It doesn't taste like grape."

May just gave her a stern look.

She whined but took the dumb medicine from her mom's hand, "It doesn't. It tastes bad. I don't want to take it."

She stared at the purple medicine and scrunched her nose up at it. She didn't like it. Why did they make it purple and if it was supposed to taste like grape, why did it taste so bitter and disgusting?

Her mom sighed, "I know it tastes bad sweetie but it will help you feel better. Would you rather be sick?"

Skye let out a frustrated breath before taking the nasty medicine because the only thing worse than drinking fake-grape syrup was being sick. May handed her the glass of water and Skye drank half of it before the taste was out of her mouth. She handed it back to May and then crawled over and attached herself to her mom. She wrapped her arms and legs around May's neck and waist and laid her head on her shoulder, "I feel bad."

Rubbing soothing circles on her back, May pressed a kiss to the side of her head and made comforting sounds, "I know."

They stayed cuddled for a while before they heard Trip shout, "Mom!"

May went to stand up but Skye didn't let go of her. She didn't want to be by herself and she felt sick and she just wanted to stay pressed close to her mom, "I don't want to be alone."

Her mom just stood up and readjusted her so that she was holding her with one hand before making her way out of her room and down the hall towards Trip. When they walked in, Trip's room was dark and he had a hand over his eyes.

May made a sympathetic sound, "Headache?"

Trip nodded and said softly, "I think… I think I'm going to throw up."

Her mom quickly set her on feet before Skye had a chance to protest and grabbed the trash bin sitting my Trip's desk. May sat on the edge of Trip's bed and pulled him into a sitting position before setting the trash bin in his lap and wrapping his arms around the bin for him. She watched as her brother leaned over the trash bin. He didn't do anything but he was kind of swaying. He didn't look too good.

May rubbed his back, "When was the last time you took any medicine?"

Trip groaned, "Last night?"

"I'll go grab you some more." Her mom made sure Trip had a tight grip on the trash bin before standing up and moving towards the door.

Skye stopped her by wrapping both arms around her thighs, "Don't leave me."

May reached down and picked her back up. They both made their way to the bathroom and Skye made a pathetic sound, "My throat hurts mommy."

Her mom pressed a kiss to her forehead and nearly collided with Phil when he stepped out of Natasha's room. May stopped and Skye looked up at her dad. He looked tired, "Nat's asleep again."

Her mom let out a breath, "Okay good. Could you take Skye and check on the twins? Trip's not doing so well."

Phil nodded and May transferred her over to her dad's arms. Her mom brushed her bangs out of her eyes and gave her a tiny smile before continuing on towards the bathroom. She set her head on Phil's shoulder and tightened her arms around his neck, "My throat hurts."

"I know sweetie."

She sniffled and coughed before saying, "I'm sick."

Phil started walking towards her room, where Wanda was sleeping, "I know sweetheart."

"Everyone else is sick too."

"Yes they are."

Skye unwrapped one arm from around her dad's neck so that she could use it to wipe her nose, "It's not very fun."

Phil made a sympathetic sound, pushed open her bedroom door, and whispered "You'll be better before you know it."

Skye hoped that he was right.

Her room was dark and they poked their heads in to check on Wanda. Her sister looked like she was still sleeping although it was hard to tell because her head was under the blankets.

They quietly began to shut the door when Wanda's head poked out from beneath the covers, "Dad?"

Her dad moved into the room and stood beside the bed, "Just checking in. How're you feeling?"

Wanda shut her eyes again and rolled over so she was on her side facing them, "I'm alright, don't worry about me."

Phil readjusted Skye so that he could reach down and push Wanda's hair out of her face, "Impossible. Let us know if you need anything."

Wanda just nodded and it looked like she was already falling back asleep when they left the room. Pietro was still sleeping when they checked on him so she and Phil quietly shut his door and made their way back into her parent's room.

Phil set her down on the bed and she immediately curled into his side as soon as he laid down next to her. He wrapped an arm around her and she raised her hand so that she could cough into it. Her throat felt like it had scratches going up and down it and it hurt to breathe. She whimpered and buried her face against her dad's side and ignored her sick body so that she could go back to sleep.

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They all _finally_ started feeling better the next day.

Their parents took great care of them, running from one child to the next, giving them medicine and rubbing comforting circles on their backs.

They were still sort of sick and she, Trip, Wanda, and her parents were all sitting down in the living room watching a movie. Trip and Wanda were both lounging on chairs while she was wedged between her mom and dad on the couch. Her throat was still scratchy, her nose was still a little runny, and she was perpetually tired, but she felt better.

Natasha and Pietro were upstairs. Skye had learned that her sister was even more grumpy when she was sick than when she was woken up in the morning and Pietro didn't like to be fussed over when he was sick. Neither did Wanda but she didn't get as annoyed as Pietro did.

Wanda said that she felt fine and since she was the first one to get sick, they were all hoping that everyone else would feel better in a couple of hours. Wanda glanced back at them and smiled, "Thanks for taking care of me mom and dad."

Skye turned her head and smiled up at her parent's, "Yeah, thanks."

Her dad patted her knee and her mom reached forward and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "That's what we're here for guys."

Trip spoke up, "Yeah, but taking care of five sick kids couldn't have been fun."

Phil chuckled, "Yeah well, what can we say? We love you guys."

Skye wiped her nose on her sleeve and grinned at them. Her mom grabbed a tissue from the coffee table and handed it to her, "Tissues, remember?"

She shrugged sheepishly and took the tissue from her mom.

Wanda turned back around and faced the screen, "At least it's almost over."

They all watched the movie in silence until Phil coughed. She turned to stare at him and so did everyone else. He held up his hands, "It was just one cough. I'm fine."

She gave him a look but turned back to the movie. It was quiet until two minutes later when her mom started sneezing.

Skye made a sympathetic noise. She knew how terrible it was to be sick.

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Lemme know what you guys thought! Thanks for reading and don't forget to check out the poll :) xx -Ariel


	21. Everyone Gets Sick Part 2

**Hey guys! I got a few messages asking for a follow-up for the last chapter so here it is! It's short but cute :)**

 **Thanks for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Her parents were sick and Skye wasn't really sure how to help them feel better.

They were both lying down in their bed and they would shoo away anyone who went in there to try and help them. They said that they were fine but she knew that being sick wasn't fun and she didn't want them to feel bad and alone. Wanda had taken over as the family doctor now that Phil was sick and she brought them water and medicine every couple of hours. Their parents didn't want anyone else to be around them because they were afraid that they would get sick a _gain_. Skye didn't know if that could happen but the thought of being sick again was enough to make her wary of entering her parents' room.

It had been _hours_ since she had seen her mom and dad and she missed them so the next time Wanda stood up to bring them their medicine, Skye stood up with her.

Wanda gave her a look, "You should stay down here Skye."

She pouted, "I miss mommy and daddy. I want to see them and make sure they're alright."

Her sister sighed, "They're fine little monkey, they're just sick."

Skye shook her head, "I miss them. Please Wanda?"

Wanda shrugged, "Alright, let's go."

Grinning, she helped Wanda fill two glasses with water and carried them upstairs while her sister brought the medicine. They walked towards their parents' bedroom and opened it quietly just in case they were sleeping.

The room was dim and Skye could see that their trash bin had been moved so that it was sitting by the side of the bed and was full of tissues. Ew.

Phil's head stayed buried beneath the blankets but May glanced over at them and smiled. It looked forced. Her mom's nose was red, her eyes were watery, and she looked _tired_. Skye didn't like seeing her like this.

She hovered by the door while Wanda took the water glasses from her and set them down on the bedside table, along with the packet of medicine.

Wanda kept her voice low so that she didn't wake up their dad, "This is the last of the medicine. Pietro and I will go grab some more. Do you need anything?"

When May spoke, her voice was hoarse and it made Skye wince. It sounded like it hurt, "Maybe some tissues."

"Alright. Text me if you think of anything else."

Her mom nodded and glanced over to her, "Hey Skye."

She grabbed onto the doorway with one hand and waved uncertainly with the other. It was weird to see them like this and she wished that they would get better right now so that they could all go to the playground together and have fun. She didn't like seeing her parents sick.

Wanda whispered something to May and Skye couldn't hear what it was but May nodded and sat up a little, "I'm fine Skye, just a little sick. Your dad and I will be better before you know it."

She didn't know why, but before she could think about it, she was running out of the room.

She heard Wanda say, "I got it mom," before hands wrapped around her waist.

Her sister stopped her and turned her around, "What happened?"

Skye looked at her feet and bit the inside of her cheek, "Mommy didn't look very good."

She felt Wanda brush her hair behind her shoulders and put a hand on her arm, "Well, she's sick little monkey. You didn't look very good when you were sick either."

"She'll get better though, right?"

Wanda gently shook her arm until she looked up at her, "She'll get better."

Skye took a breath and held out her pinky, "You promise?"

Intertwining their pinkies, Wanda gave her a reassuring smile, "I promise."

Feeling better, she nodded and let Wanda lead her downstairs and into the living room, where the rest of their siblings were. She grabbed onto Alice and sat on the floor by the coffee table.

Wanda grabbed the car keys and poked Pietro's shoulder, "We gotta go to the store."

Her brother glanced at Wanda before turning back to the television, "Why do I have to go?"

"You know I hate driving. Come on, I'll buy you gummy bears."

Pietro let out a breath before standing up, "And a Hershey's bar?"

Wanda rolled her eyes, "Yeah, whatever. Let's go."

Pietro grinned and Trip jumped up from the couch, "Could you drop me off at Mack's?"

Wanda nodded and walked to the door, "Sure. Nat, look after Skye please?"

Natasha raised her hand to her forehead in a mock-salute, "Yes ma'am."

Skye giggled and Pietro grinned at them before all three of them disappeared out the door. It was quiet and she squished herself close to her sister's side. She and Nattie watched a movie for a couple of minutes before her phone rang.

Skye watched as her sister glanced at who was calling and smiled before pressing the green button, "Hello?"

She pulled Alice closer to her chest and listened, "No, mom and dad are the only sick one's left… Maybe wait until tomorrow to come over Clint, you might get sick too...No, you're a giant baby when you're sick."

Skye slid off the couch and wandered into the kitchen. When Nattie and Clint talked on the phone, it could take awhile. She didn't even know how they still had things to talk about, Steve, Bucky, and those two saw each other all the time! She thought that they would run out of things to say but that never seemed to happen.

Glancing around the kitchen, Skye got an idea. Whenever she felt sick, her mom and dad always made her soup and gave her ginger ale to help her feel better. She could do the same for them. Maybe it would help them get better faster.

Combing through the lower cabinets, she pulled out a pot. Then she pulled a chair over and stood on it so that she could grab a can of chicken noodle soup and two cups. She then went over to the fridge and pulled out a big bottle of ginger ale. It was almost gone but there was enough for May and Phil to drink.

She moved the chair so that it was in front of the stove, turned the knob so that the stovetop was on, and put the pot over it. Grabbing the can of soup, she stared at it for a few seconds before shrugging and putting the can into the pot. Cooking was easy.

She then pulled the two cups closer to her and unscrewed the cap off of the ginger ale bottle. She successfully poured the liquid into one cup but before she could start pouring it into the other one, her hand accidentally knocked it over. Luckily the cup was plastic so it just bounced off the counter top and onto the floor without breaking.

Setting the bottle down, she hopped off her seat and picked it up. Before she could climb back onto the chair, she heard Nattie's voice, "What are you doing Skye?"

She turned around and saw her sister's eyes widen before she ran over to the stovetop and pulled the pot off of it. She grabbed a towel and took the can of soup out of the pot.

Skye put a hand on her hip, "Hey! I was making mommy and daddy lunch so that they'll feel better. That was their soup!"

Nattie grinned at her, "It would help if you cooked the soup in the pot rather than in the can."

She scrunched up her nose, "The can was _in_ the pot Nattie."

Laughing, her sister motioned for her to step back onto the chair, "Trust me, my way will work better."

She thought that her way was going pretty well but she let her sister open up the can of soup and pour it into the pot before setting it back on the stovetop. Then she let her help pour the ginger ale into the second cup and they both waited for the soup to heat up enough so that they could put it into two bowls.

They carefully brought everything upstairs and into their parent's room. This time, both of them were awake. May was reading and Phil was typing away on his laptop. Both of them looked tired and Skye wished that they would stop being sick and feel better.

Their parents looked over at them when she and Nattie walked in and gave them their lunch. Phil smiled at her as she set his bowl of soup and cup of ginger ale on his bedside table, "Thanks sweetie, you didn't have to make us lunch."

Nattie laughed, "She was determined."

May took a sip from her glass and grinned at her, "That was very thoughtful, thanks for taking care of us baby."

Skye grabbed onto her moon pendant, "I just want you guys to be okay again."

Her mom made a soft sound, "If I wasn't sick, I'd hug you."

Phil nodded, "Same here."

She grinned, "Stop being sick then."

She watched at her dad picked up his bowl of soup and started eating it, "We'll be fine by tomorrow. I mean, look at this quality care you guys are giving us."

Nattie walked over and grabbed onto her hand, "Just returning the favor. We'll let you guys rest."

Before she let her sister tug her out of the room, she quickly leaned forward and wrapped an arm around her dad. She didn't really care if she got sick again, "Feel better daddy."

She stepped out of the hug and waved at her mom, "You too mommy."

Her parents both grinned at her and she didn't object when Natasha led her out of their room.

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Let me know what you thought! And don't forget to vote for which one-shot you'd like written out next! xx -Ariel


	22. Nat Helps Skye Through A Panic Attack

**Hey guys! This is inspired by skyedaisyjohnson181001's prompt: 'I was wondering if you could have a chapter where Skye gets scared and starts panicking again and Natasha helps her through it by herself and they talk about it.' If you haven't read You Can Trust Me, this chapter contains some very mild spoilers for that story so beware.**

 **I'm not very happy with this chapter but I got sick of staring at it for the past few days and I wasn't sure how to fix so here it is. I hope you guys like it anyways. Any chapter with Skye and Nat is a fun one to write but idk why this one was so difficult. If you guys aren't that happy with it, I can rewrite it so lemme know.**

 **I put a new poll up! I think I'm going to do that every 10 or so chapters just so that you guys will be able to vote for the new prompts that I add to it. Don't forget to go check it out and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thanks for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Despite her weekly sessions with Jiaying, sometimes Skye still had panic attacks. They usually happened if she was overwhelmed or when she was triggered by loud noises or yelling. They had become less frequent, Skye was _very_ happy about that because they were _not_ fun, but they still happened. Luckily, Jiaying had taught her certain tricks and breathing exercises that helped her get through them and they never usually lasted too long. Either way, they were still terrible and emotionally exhausting and she wished that they would stop. It had been weeks since her last panic attack and Skye thought that they might have gone away forever but of course she was wrong.

Playing in the park with Nattie was one of her favorite things to do. Usually Jemma and Fitz came with them but they were busy today so it was just the two of them. Sometimes Skye wondered why her sister didn't mind playing with her on the playground even though it was mostly full of little kids. Nattie just said that it relaxed her and that she liked spending time with her. That was a good enough answer for Skye and she wasn't going to question it because she _loved_ spending time with Nattie.

They were sitting in the sandpit just hanging out and catching their breath. They had played tag with a bunch of other kids and the constant running around along with the hot midday sun had made them a little tired so they were sitting in the shade cooling off.

Her sister was letting sand fall through her fingertips while she was scooping out a hole, happily digging towards cooler, damper sand. Her breathing was finally slowing down when a cop car flew down the street with its siren blaring. An ambulance passed them a second or two later, the sirens and lights startling her.

Her reaction was instantaneous and she had no control over it. The flashing lights and noise brought her back to being carried out of a house by a giant policeman with blood sticking to her skin and her own screams making her throat raw. She could feel her breathing pick back up and it felt like her heart was beating against her ribcage. Rationally, Skye knew that her sudden fear was completely in her head but she just felt so _terrified_ that it was hard to tell her mind that she was safe here with Nattie.

Hating her mind for doing this to herself, she whimpered and tried to regulate her breathing while fending off the scary images in her head. It felt like she was being choked. Her arms started tingling because she couldn't get enough air into her lungs and that only made her more scared.

She felt hands grab onto her shoulders and flinched back. She definitely didn't feel like being touched right now.

She remembered what Jiaying had taught her and told herself that she was alright. She wasn't in any danger right now and all the bad things that she was remembering had happened in the past but it was hard to remember that. Her brain wasn't working right.

She wished her mom or dad were here. They always helped.

As she tried to control her breathing, she heard Nattie calling her name. She concentrated on her sister's voice and was _finally_ able to focus on Natasha's raspy voice. She kept repeating the same thing, "You're alright Skye, you're okay."

She didn't feel alright but she knew that these things usually just passed after a little while even though they felt like they dragged on for hours so she knew that she eventually would be alright.

She felt Nattie lift up her right hand and hold it to her chest, right over where her heart was beating steadily. Her sister didn't seem to mind that she was getting damp sand all over her so Skye didn't either, she just focused on Nattie's heartbeat. It was strong and even and it helped drag her out of her bad memories.

She felt the chokehold on her throat ease up and she was able to breathe a little easier. Her mind started clearing up and she sucked in a breath, held it for four seconds, and slowly released it, just like Jiaying taught her to do.

The tingling feeling in her arms slowly started to go away and she found herself able to focus on the things going on around her. Kids were still running around and laughing while parents watched on. The sun disappeared behind some clouds and the playground got a little darker before the sun came back out and it got bright again. It seemed like no one had noticed her while she was freaking out, which she was eternally grateful for.

She looked up and into Nattie's concerned face and launched herself at her. She wrapped her arms around her sister's neck and buried her face in her shoulder.

Panic attacks made her feel weak and tired and a little ashamed that she couldn't control her own body but more than anything, they were terrifying. Not being able to breathe or take command of herself scared her and she wished that she never had a panic attack ever again.

She felt Nattie's fingers comb through her hair, just like her mom did, and it helped comfort her, "Oh маленькая звезда, it's okay."

She didn't know if everything was okay, but it _was_ better. She felt way better now, just tired and shaken up, but at least she could breathe again.

Skye lifted her head from Natasha's shoulder and stared at her throat because for some reason, it was hard for her to look her sister in the eye, "Can we go home?"

Nattie was quiet for a couple of seconds before standing up, brushing the sand off of her clothes, and holding out her pinky. Skye gratefully intertwined their pinkies and they both started walking away from the playground and towards their house.

It was quiet for a minute or two and Skye couldn't help but anxiously bite the inside of her cheek. Usually when something like this happened, she was with May or Phil and they were the ones who helped her deal with it, not Nattie. Her sister knew that she sometimes had panic attacks but she had never been the one to help her out of one and Skye hoped that she hadn't freaked her out or anything.

Unable to stand the silence any longer, Skye kept her eyes straight ahead but nervously said, "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" She determinedly stared straight ahead so she couldn't see her sister's face but she could hear the confusion in her voice.

Tightening her hold on Natasha's pinky, she shrugged, "I don't know, I just am."

Nattie shook their intertwined fingers so that Skye would look over at her, "You don't have to be sorry маленькая звезда."

Her sister's face was earnest and the fact that her panic attack hadn't caused Natasha to look at her differently was enough to make her finally feel like everything was back to normal. She still felt tired but she was alright.

She nodded and looked up the road. She could see their house a little ways ahead of them and she felt happy when she saw Phil's car in the driveway. Both of her parents were home.

Natasha swung their arms between them and said, "I've never had a panic attack before but they seem pretty scary."

Skye shrugged again, "Yeah, sometimes I can't breathe and it scares me a lot."

She looked up and saw Natasha wince. Her sister looked down and their eyes met before Nattie glanced away real fast, "I'm sorry Skye, that sounds terrible. I just… I mean, was I…"

Natasha was having trouble with her words and Skye could see the frustration on her face, "What?"

Her sister took a breath before saying, "What can I do to help next time? I mean, if there is a next time, I want to be able to help you."

Skye raised an eyebrow. Her sister _did_ help her through her panic attack, didn't she know that? "You did help me Nattie."

Natasha gave her a disbelieving look, "All I did was tell you that everything was okay."

Skye nodded and considered her words. She wanted Natasha to know that she had helped and that she was grateful for it, "Yeah, but when that happens, my brain gets all fuzzy and it doesn't really work right and it's easier to concentrate on voices rather than the words in my head. You helped, I promise."

Natasha nodded, "Okay, so if there is a next time, I'll make sure to talk you through it. Anything else?"

Skye felt her cheeks get warm and she didn't know why she was embarrassed about this, maybe because it was so personal, but she shook it off and told her sister anyways, "It helps when I feel your heartbeat."

Her sister just nodded again, like she was filing the information away in her brain, "Okay."

For some strange reason, Skye felt the need to justify herself, "It helps me concentrate. Your heartbeat was strong."

Natasha gave her a small smile and they both walked to their front porch and up the steps. Nattie went to open the front door but Skye stopped her by tugging on her pinky. She rushed forward and wrapped her arms around her sister in another hug, "Thanks Nattie."

Strong arms pulled her closer and Skye felt her sister rub small circles onto her back, "Of course маленькая звезда. What are sisters for?"

Skye smiled into Natasha's stomach and leaned back, letting the seriousness of the situation melt away, "For distracting mommy and daddy while the other one steals cookies?"

Natasha pressed a light kiss to the top of her head before grinning at her, "I'm pretty sure dad bought some Oreo's yesterday and I know where he hid them."

Her sister gave her a conspiratorial look and Skye laughed and nodded before pulling open the door and rushing inside.

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Not my best, I know. Please leave a review and let me know your thoughts! Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who is kind enough to leave a review! You're all beautiful gems and I'm extremely grateful :) Don't forget to go vote on the new poll! xx- Ariel


	23. May's Heartfelt Moment With Skye

**Hey guys! This was inspired by Inkblot29's prompt: 'What about either early on in your universe or whenever really and May's having this moment with skye where she is holding her and skye konks out in her arms. May absolutely loves the fact that her baby trust her enough to fall deeply asleep while she is holding her :) even though all the parenting books speak against it May doesn't want to put her down and is content just holding her while she naps. After some time maybe skye wakes up and apologizes which May finds weird but given skye's history, falling asleep in some ones arms probably isn't okay.'**

 **This takes place early on in You Can Trust Me when Skye doesn't call May or Phil her mom and dad and she's still learning to trust them. This little Skye is more skittish and less confident than the one in the past one-shots and if you think she's acting differently, that's because she is :) Hope you like it! As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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May couldn't help but grin as Skye leaned back into her. For some reason, Skye had climbed onto her lap rather than sit next to her on the couch like she normally did and there was not a chance in hell that she was going to object to that.

It was a rare moment when Skye was relaxed enough to let her hold her without tensing up. She could count the number of times that she got a chance to cuddle Skye on one hand. The rest of her children all had taken a little while to feel comfortable enough to get close, Natasha especially, but it seemed different for Skye. While Wanda, Pietro, Trip, and Tasha all had understandable trust issues, Skye _also_ had trust issues and on top of that, she was _conditioned_ to flinch away from physical contact. Because of this and Skye's natural reaction to shy away from affection, it was a small miracle that Skye was happily sitting on her lap while watching television.

She absentmindedly ran a hand over Skye's head, carefully combing her fingers through her hair while making sure to not tug on it, and continued to watch Skye's show. Unfortunately, Spongebob had become a regular in the Coulson household and while his voice grated on her every nerve, Skye seemed to love him, so she made sure to keep her displeasure of the talking sponge to herself.

As the show dragged on, Skye pressed further and further into her. Her little back was leaning against May's front and her head slowly made its way to May's shoulder. She could tell that Skye was getting tired, the little girl didn't take naps every single day but she did on occasion, and May couldn't bring herself to tell Skye that she should probably go lie down on her bed rather than fall asleep on top of her. It was a little selfish and probably not all that comfortable for Skye but she didn't really care so she kept her mouth shut.

She felt Skye turn a little and tuck her head under her chin before whispering, "I'm sleepy."

She wrapped an arm around Skye and tugged her a little closer so that when she went limp in her arms, like she did a couple seconds later, she wouldn't slump over. She waited a few moments so that she knew Skye was fully asleep before shifting the little girl so that she was cradling her and glancing down at her face.

While she was sleeping, Skye's face was relaxed, which was a nice change. Skye already looked younger than she actually was, more like she just turned five instead of six, but while she was sleeping, Skye looked positively tiny. May carefully leaned down to press a gentle kiss to her little girl's forehead, grinned when Skye let out a little sigh, and slowly reached out for the remote so that she could get that stupid sponge off of her television. Switching the channel to the news, May hunkered down and listened to the overly-enthusiastic news anchor's voice as she enjoyed the slight weight of Skye in her arms.

She knew what all the parenting books said, she had forced herself to read them when they had decided to bring Skye in since she was younger than any of the other children they had fostered, and she knew that you weren't really supposed to hold your child when they slept. It could lead to dependency issues that could lead to them not being able to sleep on their own but right now, she couldn't find it in herself to care. Wouldn't a little dependency between the two of them be a good thing? If Skye felt comfortable enough to fall asleep in her arms, there was no way that she was going to tell her to stop. It seemed like that would ruin things rather than make them better. The parenting books didn't seem geared towards emotionally and physically abused children with trust issues so she didn't know why she was listening to them anyways. _She_ should write a freaking parenting book.

It isn't easy bringing someone into your home, _especially_ when you don't know if they will have a negative impact on your other children, but miraculously, Skye was the perfect fit for their family and she just couldn't turn down a child when they needed help. It wasn't in her nature to do that. It had been a gamble fostering Skye, so many things could have gone wrong. Skye, Tasha, and Trip could have hated each other, Skye could have lashed out to the point where they couldn't have kept her, she could have even ran away. May was friends with other foster parents and all of these things had happened to them at least once but amazingly, none of this had happened. She didn't want to say that she knew everything would turn out alright and risk sounding like an idiot because she _didn't_ know that, but everything _had_ turned out alright so far and she was beyond happy that that was the case. Honestly, even if things had turned out badly, she knew that there was no way that she would ever be able to bring Skye back to that orphanage. She and Phil were in it for the long-haul and there was nothing that would change her mind about that, it was just an extra bonus that Skye seemed to be adjusting to them fairly well.

She carefully reached up and brushed a strand of hair that had fallen over Skye's face behind her ear before pressing a kiss to her forehead.

It never took long for her to fall in love with her children. She wouldn't even call it _falling_ in love, she would describe it as something just clicking into place. It happened suddenly and it came with this feeling of absolute rightness that her kids _belonged_ with her. This had happened with the rest of her kids so it didn't really surprise her when she looked down at Skye's sleeping face and realized that she loved her. Of course she had cared for Skye when they had decided to foster her. She wanted Skye to be happy and wanted to care for her and make her feel safe, and that was all still true, but right now she knew without a doubt that she loved Skye like she was her own child.

A few days after they had brought Trip home, Natasha had nervously come up to her and asked if they still loved her. She had thought that since they had brought Trip in that they would love her a little less so that they could love him. Tasha had tried to play it off like she was just asking and that it didn't bother her but May had seen the worry in her eyes and she had vehemently reassured her that that wasn't how it worked. She had explained that a parent's love didn't have a limit or a quota, it just grew. If she wanted to get sappy about it, she could say that she felt the love inside her grow as she was looking at Skye but Trip would probably make fun of her if she said that out loud so she just pressed another kiss to Skye's forehead, leaned back against the couch, and waited for her sleeping child to wake up.

Thirty minutes later, May's arm and neck were starting to get stiff but she had determinedly stayed still so as not to wake up Skye. She had gotten tired of watching the news and had switched the channel to one of those trashy reality shows that Pietro always swears he doesn't watch but everyone knows that he does. May could tell that two of the girls living in the same house were about to fight and she was eagerly waiting for that to happen when she felt Skye stir.

Skye reached out and grabbed a fistful of May's shirt in one hand and balled her other hand into a fist before rubbing her eyes sleepily. May watched her as her little girl blinked blearily and looked up at her. Skye gave her a tiny smile and May was about to say something but before the words could make it past her lips, Skye's eyes widened and she flinched back. May had to quickly tighten her arms around the little girl so that she didn't fall off of her lap and onto the ground.

She made sure that Skye wasn't going to fall before loosening her grip on her so that she didn't feel trapped, "What's wrong? Did you have bad dream?"

Skye looked fully awake now. Her eyes were still wide and she was shaking her head back and forth, "I'm sorry May."

Confused, she just raised an eyebrow, "For what?"

Skye sat up in her arms but when she went to climb off of her lap, May carefully wrapped a hand around her arm. She didn't want Skye to think that she was forcing her to stay but she also didn't want Skye to think that she wanted her to leave. The parenting books didn't talk about this.

Skye bit her bottom lip and she was looking at everything except her, "I didn't mean to fall asleep on you, I'm sorry."

While that sounded very considerate, May could tell that there was more going on here, "That's alright sweetheart, I was just watching t.v. anyways."

Trying to get the worried look off of Skye's face, May gave her an encouraging smile. It didn't seem to work and Skye still wasn't looking her in the eyes, "I broke the rules though."

May had no idea what she was talking about. They had rules in their house, most of them were just so that their children would remain in one piece and warned against eating too many cookies before dinner, but she couldn't think of any that Skye had broken.

"What do you mean? What rules?"

Skye wrung her fingers together and stared at them, "I'm only s'posed to sleep in my bed."

That was _not_ one of her rules. Her rules made sense and were put in place to maximize the chances of her children growing up to be responsible, thoughtful adults… this rule was just stupid and unnecessary, "That's not a rule in this house Skye, it's alright. I don't mind if you fall asleep on me."

The little girl _finally_ looked up at her and May gave her a smile so that she knew she was being honest. Skye studied her for a few seconds before nodding uncertainly and sliding off of her lap anyways, "Okay. Um, can I have a snack?"

May nodded, stood up, and led Skye into the kitchen for a snack.

She had pretty much done everything the parenting books had told her not to do. She had encouraged something that they said would cause dependency issues and had altered rules that Skye was used to, which was apparently a giant no-no. She thought back to the four children that she had already raised and couldn't help but grin a little when she thought about how amazingly wonderful they all are. She had played a pretty significant part in raising them and she had never followed advice from a dumb parenting book before, she sure as hell wasn't going to start now.

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What'd you guys think? It's hard writing in Melinda's POV!

Sorry about the delay guys! I've been getting ready to go back to university and it's been hectic! I'm moving in in two days so the next update might not be for a few days. Sorry guys! I'm not even back at college and it's already kicking my ass :)

Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thanks for reading! xx- Ariel


	24. Pepper & Tony Babysit

**Hey guys! This was inspired by LupaMalum and a guest's prompt: 'Mom and dad get a night off and Pepper and Tony babysit.'**

 **This one is super long on purpose just because I've been kind of awol lately but now I'm all settled into my dorm and classes have started again so I'm starting to get into a routine and hopefully I'll be back to writing more often :) Thanks for being patient! Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"But why can't you stay to tuck me in and read me a story? You _always_ do that." Skye whined into Phil's shoulder. She had wrapped herself around him and was refusing to let go.

She felt a hand smooth her hair down and tried to press herself closer to her dad which didn't seem to work because she was already impossibly close, "Because our reservation is at six and you don't go to sleep until eight."

She let out a sound of protest, "It takes you that long to eat?"

She didn't know her mom had walked into the living room until she heard her say, "It doesn't take us that long to eat but we're going to a movie afterwards."

Raising her head and looking over to her mom, Skye smiled hopefully, "You can watch a movie here with me!"

Nattie, who was sprawled out on the floor, looked up from her phone, "It's a date-night маленькая звезда. That means that they want to hang out by themselves."

Turning back to her dad, she leaned back a little so that she could see his face, "Why don't you want to hang out with me? I'm a fun girl."

Her mom and dad both laughed but Skye just continued to stare at her dad until he answered her question. She didn't want them to leave her.

Phil leaned down to kiss her forehead and May walked over and grabbed her from Phil's arms. She immediately wrapped herself around her mom and ducked her head so that it was tucked under May's chin. Her mom combed her fingers through her hair and the familiarity of the action was comforting, "We know you're fun Skye but your dad and I need a night to ourselves. Besides, you'll love Pepper and Tony."

Her mom's voice was light and reassuring but that didn't make her feel any better, "I don't want you to go mommy."

May started walking towards the staircase, "It'll only be for a couple of hours sweetie. Come on, you can help me pick out what to wear."

Skye didn't say anything. She _really_ didn't like the idea of her mom or dad leaving her, even if it was only for a couple of hours.

She hovered right next to May as they worked together to pick out her outfit and insisted on sitting on her lap as she fixed her hair and makeup. She knew that she was being clingy but she didn't care, "Are you sure you have to leave?"

May set her hairbrush down and reached forward to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes, "You'll be fine Skye. If you need us, you can have Pepper or Tony call us and we're only going to be fifteen minutes away."

Skye pouted, "Why do strangers have to watch me? Why can't I stay at Jemma's?"

Her mom set her on the ground so that she could lean forward and put lotion on her legs, "They left to go visit Jemma's grandma yesterday, remember?"

She had forgotten about that. Jemma had been excited to go see her grandma all week, it was all her friend had talked about at school, "Why do strangers have to babysit me?"

May set the bottle of lotion down and motioned her forward. Her mom smelled like flowers and Skye breathed her in as she quickly stepped forward, climbed on top of her, and wrapped her arms around her mom in a tight hug. Her mom pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "They aren't stranger's sweetie, Pepper and Tony are our friends. Usually it would be alright for Trip to watch you but he's on that school trip."

Trip and his friends had all gone on a trip to Washington DC that was chaperoned by one of their history teachers. They were going to be gone all weekend and Trip had been extremely excited about visiting the Smithsonian. She wished that he was here so that they could play Mario Cart together and have fun, it would be way better than being left with people she didn't know.

Skye groaned, "Why can't Nattie watch me?"

"We trust your sister but your father and I would feel more comfortable if there was an adult here with you. Besides, Pepper and Tony are really excited to come and play with you."

Skye didn't want to play with Tony and Pepper. She wanted to help her dad make dinner and she wanted her mom to sing Tangled songs with her when she was taking her shower. She wanted her mom to comb her hair before she went to sleep and she wanted her dad to read her a story before bed because he always gave each character a silly voice. She didn't want her parents to leave her with some strangers, even if they were their friends.

She stayed quiet and May kept her cuddled close for a few minutes until they heard the doorbell ring. May tried to set her down but Skye just wrapped her arms tighter around her neck and bent her legs so that they didn't touch to floor. Her mom hauled her back into her arms and walked out of her room and downstairs.

The first thing Skye saw was Nattie hugging a tall lady with strawberry blonde hair. The man who was standing behind her was talking to her dad. Skye tightened her hold on her mom as they walked up to who she assumed was Pepper and Tony.

Everyone looked towards them as they stopped by the front door and Skye shrunk back a little. Pepper and Tony seemed nice enough, they were both grinning at her and Pepper still had an arm around Nattie's shoulders, but she didn't like talking to strangers and she especially didn't like being left with strangers.

Pepper's smile widened, "Hey Melinda. This must be Skye. It's very nice to meet you."

Skye waved shyly before turning her head so that her face was pressed against May's neck. Her mom rubbed soothing circles on her back, "She's just a little shy."

She heard Pepper say, "That's alright, I'm sure we'll be the best of friends in no time. When's your guys' reservation?"

Phil spoke up, "We should be leaving soon if we want to make it. They haven't eaten dinner yet so we left money for pizza. Tasha knows what Skye likes."

May interrupted him, "We left Skye's pajamas on her bed and she'll probably feel more comfortable if Nat sits with her when she takes her shower tonight."

Skye nodded and May gently patted her back, "Bedtime's at eight for Skye, Nat can stay up as late as she wants since it's a weekend." Her mom jostled her a bit and her voice turned a little silly, "She'll want you to read her a bunch of stories just so that she can stay up later, isn't that right Skye?" She finally looked up and gave her mom a sheepish look. She did that almost every night. May continued, "But the limit is three stories before bed."

Her dad spoke up again and she looked over to him. He was grinning at her, "We try to restrict sugar this late at night but some ice cream couldn't hurt." He paused before clapping his hands and turning to Tony, "Oh, and make sure you turn on her nightlight."

She couldn't help but jump a little at Tony's loud voice, "Alright alright, I think we can take it from here. You two go wine and dine yourselves."

She tightened her arms around May's neck at the thought of them leaving soon. She turned her head and saw her dad give May an anxious look, "Alright, we'll be back around ten. Call us if you need us."

Nattie stepped forward to give Phil a hug and May leaned back a little so that she could press a kiss to Skye's forehead, nose, and each of her cheeks, "Bye sweetie. I love you to the moon and back…"

May waited for her to finish for her like she always did but Skye didn't. She partly felt angry that they were leaving her but she mostly felt sad and anxious.

Her mom frowned a little and tilted her head, "Come on baby, tonight will be fun."

Skye felt her eyes fill up with tears and sniffled, "I love you too, more than all the stars in the sky."

May gave her a big smile and she tried to return it with her own smile but it felt forced and a little wobbly. Her mom pressed another kiss to her forehead and passed her over to her dad, who gave her a tight hug.

"Have fun tonight sweetheart. I love you."

She pressed her face against his shoulder, squeezed her arms around him real tight, and only let go when Phil leaned back, "I love you too daddy."

He set her on the ground and she immediately latched onto his leg. He ran a hand over her head and looked over to Natasha, "Bye Tasha. Listen to Pep and Tony okay?"

Nattie smirked, "Don't I always?"

Tony chuckled and Natasha leaned in to give her mom a hug. May grabbed onto her bag and moved towards the door. Her dad tried to walk after her but Skye wouldn't let go of his leg.

Natasha wrapped a hand around her arm and gently tugged her away from Phil. Both of her parents kept glancing back at her until Pepper reminded them that they were going to miss their reservation if they didn't leave soon. Skye leaned into her sister's legs and tried not to cry as her parents waved at her one last time before shutting the door.

It was quiet for a moment before Natasha turned her around and wrapped an arm around her before pulling her close for a hug. Pepper and Tony stayed quiet and she was happy about that because her parents were gone and she just wanted to hug her sister before she had to talk to strangers.

Skye forced her tears back and told herself not to cry. Her parents were going to be back soon and she could just hang out with Nattie until then. It was going to be alright.

Her sister stepped back and gave her a comforting smile, "It'll be okay маленькая звезда. How about we order some pizza for dinner? We can get extra cheese on it."

She _loved_ extra cheese. She nodded and Nattie's smile grew bigger, "I'll go call it in, alright?"

She nodded again and watched her sister disappear into the kitchen to get the number of the pizza place they always used. She didn't realize that she had been left alone with Pepper and Tony until she turned around and saw them staring at her. Pepper still had a smile on her face and Tony was kind of fidgeting from side to side. He kept glancing at her and then to Pepper and then back to her.

She grabbed onto her moon pendant and shifted her weight from foot to foot. She didn't know what to say.

Pepper glanced towards the kitchen before focusing on her, "So Skye, what do you want to do?"

Skye shrugged.

Tony clapped his hands together, "We could sing the ABC's. You know the alphabet right?"

She put a hand on her hip and tried not to be offended, "I'm not a baby, I'm six. I know the alphabet. Besides, I'm a big girl, the kindergarteners sing the ABC song, not me."

Tony smirked and nodded seriously, "What do big girls like to do?"

Skye forgot about being nervous around Pepper and Tony and scoffed, "I play with my dollies and build towers with the Lego's and play Mario Cart with my brother and sister."

Pepper spoke up, "If you'd show them to me, I'd love to see your dolls."

Skye studied her and cautiously nodded, "Okay. Can Nattie come?"

Pepper's smile widened and she nodded, "Of course she can." Pepper glanced at Tony before turning back to her, "I know that you're kind of sad about your parents not being here but they'll be back soon and Tony and I will make sure that we have a ton of fun tonight, how does that sound?"

Skye studied Pepper. She had an honest and kind-looking face. She smiled readily and Skye knew that sometimes that meant that they were fake smiles but they had all looked genuine so far and Skye found herself relaxing a little bit. Pepper seemed really nice but she wasn't too sure about Tony. He was still fidgeting and Skye could tell that he was nervous because he was playing with his hands and she did that when she was nervous.

She tilted her head, "That sounds alright."

* * *

Pepper had been really interested in her dolls, she had even remembered all of their names and listened to Skye when she had told her what each doll liked and disliked. Tony had hovered in the background as she, Pepper, and Nattie had played around with her dolls until the pizza had arrived.

Skye watched as Tony gave the pizza man money and handed the pizza box to Pepper, who took it and set it on the coffee table in the living room. She and Nattie grabbed four plates and water bottles and passed them around before she climbed onto one of the comfy chairs. It was wide enough for Natasha to squeeze in beside her while Pepper and Tony both sat on the couch.

Tony opened the box of pizza and shot her a quizzical look, "How much pizza does a tiny person eat?"

Natasha laughed, "Skye eats a slice but I'll take three."

Tony raised an eyebrow, "Three?"

Nattie copied him and raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, I don't mess around with pizza alright?"

He just shrugged and handed her a plate to pass over to Skye before giving her a plate with three pieces of pizza. Tony grabbed a slice of pizza and shoved half of it in his mouth before leaning back and talking with his mouth full, "What're we watching?"

Pepper turned to them, "Girls? Any preferences?"

Skye instantly said, "Peter Pan!"

Pepper chuckled before nodding, "Okay, do you have the DVD or is it recorded on your tv?"

Nattie handed Skye her plate before standing up, "It's a DVD, I'll set it up."

Skye nibbled on her pizza while her sister grabbed Peter Pan and fiddled with the DVD player. It was taking longer than it normally took her to get a movie playing and Skye started squirming, "C'mon Nattie, why isn't it working?"

Her sister looked over her shoulder at her, "I dunno. Last time we used the player Clint was here. He probably messed up the wiring or something."

Nattie stood up and gave her an apologetic look, "Sorry Skye, maybe Spongebob's on or something."

Skye frowned, "But… Peter Pan."

Pepper made a sympathetic sound and elbowed Tony in the stomach, "Tony can take a look at it. He's great at that stuff."

Tony coughed and swallowed his bite of pizza before nodding and hurriedly standing up, "Yeah, don't know why I didn't think of that."

Skye giggled at him. He had pizza sauce on the side of his cheek and she pointed at him as he made his way to the DVD player, "Tony! You have food on your cheek!"

He looked at her and grinned, "I was just saving it for later." She giggled again and watched as he wiped the back of his hand across his face before focusing his attention on the DVD player.

Within a few minutes, it was working perfectly and she could see the menu screen for Peter Pan on the tv. Nattie started clapping so Skye did too. Tony took a bow before sitting back down and shoving the rest of his pizza into his mouth.

Pepper and Tony weren't so bad.

* * *

Skye was running around the couch, trying to stay away from Tony's grasp. They were playing tag and even though Pepper seemed to be incredibly nervous about them breaking something, it was still fun. It was too dark to play outside so they were playing inside, which was something they weren't normally allowed to do but Skye wasn't going to tell Tony or Pepper that.

Since she had decided that she liked Pepper and Tony, she didn't mind being alone with them so Nattie was playing on her computer in her room and it was just her and Pepper running away from Tony right now. She could tell that every time she was 'it', Pepper and Tony would run slower so that she could catch them but she didn't really mind. It was still fun.

She skidded around the couch and stood on one side of the coffee table. Tony stood on the other side and grinned at her, "I've got you now."

She shook her head, "No you don't!"

He walked towards her but she circled around the table, making sure the keep the table between them so that he couldn't tag her. She stuck her tongue out at him and he pointed at her, "I'm going to get you."

She smiled and she heard Pepper laugh from where she was watching by the staircase.

He made it seem like he was going to go one way but he actually went in the opposite direction. She squealed and tried to run away but her foot got caught on the carpet and she accidently fell.

She heard Pepper say her name and instantly felt hands gently lift her back to her feet. Feeling a sharp pain on her knee, she glanced down and saw that there was a rug burn on it. It stung pretty badly and she felt her eyes well up with tears.

She heard Tony say, "Hey, hey it's alright."

Pepper walked up to her and looked at her knee before heading towards the bathroom, "I'll grab a bandaid."

She sniffled and was trying not to cry when she heard Tony say, "It's okay kid, you'll just have a cool battle scar now."

She looked up at him, "A battle scar?"

He nodded and grinned at her, "Yeah. Now all the other kids will know how tough you are."

She hadn't really thought of that before. She was never a fan of scars, having the physical proof that you had been injured wasn't something she liked to think of, but the way Tony was talking about them, he made scars seem like they were cool.

She focused on him and felt her tears go away, "Do you have battle scars?"

He stared at her for a second before tugging the collar of his shirt down a little bit so that she could see the big, ragged, scar on his chest, "Yeah, the doctors made me better but they left behind one hell of a scar." His eyes widened before he said, "Don't tell Pepper I said hell in front of you."

"You said it twice." She pointed out helpfully.

She sat down on the floor and bent her leg so that her knee didn't touch anything. Tony sat down beside her and she turned to him, "Your battle scar looks pretty bad."

She quickly realized that what she said probably wasn't that nice and she started to apologize, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

Tony interrupted her, "Nah, it's alright kid, it _is_ pretty bad."

She considered that, "Did it hurt?"

He ran a hand through his hair and let out a breath, "Yeah."

Skye made a sympathetic sound, "I'm sorry."

He just shook his head and waved her off, "It's not your fault but thanks."

Pepper walked back into the room with a box of Skye's Spongebob bandaids in hand. She sat down in front of Skye on the floor and rifled through the box, "Which one do you want Skye? You've got a lot of options here."

Pepper gave her a kind smile and Skye thought about it, "I want Squidward because he's Wanda's favorite even though he's always grumpy."

Laughing, Pepper pulled out a Squidward bandage before unwrapping it and placing it on Skye's knee. Pepper made sure not to touch her rug burn and Skye appreciated that.

Crumbling the left over paper in her hand, Pepper said, "Does it feel any better?"

Thinking of Tony's really big scar, hers paled in comparison. Skye shrugged, "It's not that bad."

"Good. It's almost your bedtime, why don't you go ask Natasha to help you with your shower?"

She nodded before standing up and running upstairs to find her sister.

* * *

Natasha had helped her with her shower, had helped her into her pajamas, and had combed her hair, so now she was reluctantly sitting on her bed because it was bedtime. Natasha had said goodnight and had wandered downstairs to watch tv.

She was leaning against her headboard, gripping Alice to her chest, while Pepper and Tony grabbed some books from her bookshelf. She had been happy earlier, once she had found out that Pepper and Tony were nice she had had a lot of fun, but now that it was nighttime, she missed her parents. They were the ones who always tucked her in and read her a story before she went to sleep. Sometimes she could convince them to stay in her room with her until she fell asleep and they were _always_ the last people she saw before she shut her eyes. It felt wrong that they weren't here to tell her goodnight, give her a kiss, and tuck her in. She missed them.

She felt like there was a hole in her chest which was usually what it felt like when she was either really sad or she was missing someone, like Pietro or Wanda.

Pepper and Tony turned towards her, each carrying two books, but paused when they saw her face. She knew that she looked like she was going to cry, probably because she _felt_ like she was going to cry, but she didn't feel like doing that in front of Pepper and Tony.

Pepper set the books on Skye's bedside table before sitting down on the end of her bed while Tony stood beside her. She tilted her head and put a hand on Skye's shin, "What's wrong Skye?"

She couldn't help it, Pepper's voice was so gentle and Skye felt really sad, so she wasn't able to stop her tears, "I miss my mommy and daddy. When are t-they coming back?"

Pepper looked at Tony before turning back to her, "You'll be asleep when they come back honey."

That only made her cry harder. She wished that her mom and dad were back. Them being away felt weird and wrong.

Tony looked uncomfortable but he took a step towards her anyway, "Hey kid, would it make you feel better if we told them to wake you up when they get home? That way you'll know that they're back."

That sounded alright but she still wished that they were here right now, "Yeah, but I still miss them."

Pepper scooted up on the bed so that she could reach forward and wipe the tears off of Skye's cheeks, "I know honey, I bet they miss you too."

Pepper comfortingly rubbed her thigh until she stopped crying. Tony awkwardly patted the top of her head and pointed towards the pile of books on her bedside table, "How about we read you four stories instead of three? I won't tell Melinda and Phil if you don't."

Skye managed to give him a wobbly smile before nodding and cuddling into her comforter and pillows. She made sure that Alice was tucked into her side while Pepper grabbed a book and started reading from it.

Four books later, Skye's eyes were drooping shut and she felt really sleepy. Pepper stood up and went to put the books back on the bookshelf.

She shut her eyes and heard Tony say, "G'night kid."

She blindly reached out and grabbed onto his hand, "Will you stay here 'til I'm asleep?"

Opening her eyes halfway, she saw Pepper walk up and stand beside Tony and he said, "Sure thing."

She shut her eyes again and pulled her blankets up to her chest. She felt a cool hand brush her hair away from her face and then Pepper said, "Sweet dreams Skye."

She mumbled, "Don't forget to tell mommy and daddy," before falling into unconsciousness.

* * *

A voice was whispering in her ear, "Skye."

She tried to wake up but was only half successful. Her eyes stayed shut but she turned toward the voice, "Daddy?

"Your mommy and I are back home okay? Go back to sleep."

She made an incoherent sound and heard her mom quietly laugh. Forcing herself to stay semi-coherent, she mumbled, "Are Tony and Pepper gone?"

"Yeah they left."

She knew she was about to fall asleep again so she quickly blurted out, "I like them," before burying her head into her pillow and falling asleep.

* * *

What'd you guys think? Idk if I wrote Tony and Pepper out right bc I've never written them before but my friend seemed to think it was alright when she read through it so I hope it's all good :) Thank you so much for reading and for being patient with me! College has started up again and it's been awesome :) When do you guys go back to school? xx -Ariel


	25. Skye Meets Thor

**Hey guys! This was inspired by Domenic675's prompt: 'Skye gets scared of Thor but he shows her how nice he actually is.' Thanks for sending that in and I hope you like it!**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye skipped a few steps ahead of her mom on their way to the playground. She was really excited because Ward was meeting her there so that they could play. Since he didn't live across the street from her anymore, she didn't see Ward as often as she used to. His foster mom, Jane, brought him and his little brother Thomas over for play dates every other week but she really liked playing with him and wished that they could do it more often.

The closer she got to the castle playground, the more excited she got. She looked over her shoulder and saw that her mom was further behind then she thought so she sighed and waited for her to catch up, "Mommy! Come on!"

She waved her mom forward and impatiently tapped her foot until May caught up with her and grabbed onto her hand. She knew that grownups sometimes held your hand when they wanted to make sure that you didn't run away from them and assumed that that was what her mom was doing.

May swung their arms between them and Skye squinted up at her, "Can we ask Jane if we can play again next week?"

Her mom laughed, "We can ask but we'll have to ask Grant's foster dad. Jane got held up at her lab and couldn't take them today."

Skye had never seen Ward's foster dad before but he and Thomas seemed to really love him. They told her that he was a firefighter and they get to go visit him at the fire station and climb all over the fire truck. She had never met him before but from the way Ward and his brother talked about their foster dad, she thought that she would probably like him.

She looked back to the road in front of her and let go of her mom's hand so that she could intertwine their pinkies, "Okay, do you think he'll say yes?"

"I'm sure he will. If not, I can go pick up Grant and he can come play at our house."

Skye smiled triumphantly, "Yes!"

They both walked into the park and she looked around for Ward and Thomas. May pointed over towards the monkey bars and Skye directed her attention over there. Ward was climbing on top of the bars and Skye felt a little afraid for him because she didn't want him to fall. Thomas was right next to the monkey bars and was hanging from a really, really tall man's bicep.

May tugged her forward and they started making their way over to them. Skye studied the big guy who she was assuming was Ward's foster dad.

He was _huge_. Besides being super tall, like his legs were longer than her body, he had a lot of really big muscles. His arms were bigger than her whole head. His blonde hair was long and had some small braids in it and he had crinkles around his eyes because he was smiling widely as Thomas hung off of his arms.

Even though he was smiling, he looked intimidating and scary and Skye didn't know if she liked him.

She situated herself so that she was a step behind her mom and hid behind her legs. Her mom squeezed her pinky and Skye knew that was her way of asking what was wrong but she stayed quiet.

By the time they reached Ward, he had climbed off of the monkey bars and had joined his little brother in climbing all over their foster father. They stopped in front of them and Ward let go of his foster dad's bicep and landed on the ground before walking over to her and grinning, "Hey Skye."

She waved at him, "Hey Ward," she peered around her mom and waved at his little brother, "Hi Thomas."

Thomas continued to hang from his dad's arm but he smiled at her, "Hi!"

Ward's dad reached over and wrapped his unoccupied arm around Thomas' waist and lifted him off of his arm so that he could hold him like a football. Skye's eyes widened as she watched his arm muscles ripple. Thomas shrieked with laughter and kicked his legs until he was set down on the ground.

Her mom laughed, "Hello Grant and Thomas. Thor, it's good to see you again!"

Thor? What kind of name was that? She usually wasn't one to judge names, getting stuck with a name like Mary Sue Poots had made her sensitive to other people with less than usual names, but even then, Thor was kind of out there.

Thor smiled at her mom, "It's been too long Melinda!"

Skye jumped a little at his booming voice and grabbed onto the back of her mom's shirt. Thor stepped forward to shake her mom's hand and Skye looked up, up, up at his face.

Thor glanced down at her and his smile grew impossibly bigger, "You must be Skye. My son's have told me a lot about you."

Skye continued to clutch her mom's shirt with one hand but cautiously waved at him with the other.

May reached back to put a hand on top of her head and waved her phone around, "Well I'm going to go sit down. I have some emails to answer." Her mom looked down at her, "Stay in sight okay sweetie?"

Skye swallowed nervously, nodded, and watched as her mom walked over to the benches where all the other parents usually sat. She thought that Thor would go join her but when she looked over to him, he was still standing there smiling while Thomas starting climbing on him again.

She turned her attention to Ward, "Wanna go play on the castle?"

Ward nodded at her and ran off. She cast a nervous glance at his dad before following after him. She saw Thomas run over to them and she started climbing up the wooden play structure after Ward. They ducked and crawled around the castle and Skye glanced back at Thomas when she heard him giggle.

She felt her lips twitch when she saw Thor. He had tried to climb after them but the castle was made for children, Trip constantly hit his head when he played on it with her, and since he was _massive_ , he was stuck. She made her way towards him and Thomas and watched as Thomas put his hands on Thor's shoulders and pushed.

Thor grinned at her and Thomas looked at her when she approached them, "He's stuck! Help me push him out!"

Thor made dramatic grunting sounds as she and Thomas both pushed on his shoulders. After a couple of seconds, he made an "oomph" sound and jerked backwards before falling onto his butt on the ground. Skye didn't know if he actually fell or if he did it to make Thomas laugh but she couldn't help but smile.

Thor looked up at them from the ground and shrugged, "I'll just wait here."

She tugged on Thomas' arm and they both ran off to go find Ward. They all played tag on the castle for a little while before Thomas and Ward wanted to go on the seesaw. She and Ward jumped off of the play structure from the top and Thomas stared after them for a second before Thor magically appeared and helped him down.

Thomas smiled up at him, "Want to go on the seesaw with us?"

Ward tugged on his arm and didn't really give him a choice as he dragged his dad over to the seesaws. Thor just laughed heartily, "I think I'm too big for the seesaw guys."

Ward just shook his head, "I bet we all could sit on one side and you'd _still_ be able to lift us up."

Thor just shook his head and motioned for them to sit on one side of the seesaw, "That would be a safe bet."

Skye sat down first with Thomas sitting behind her and Ward sat down behind him. Thomas made an excited sound and pointed to the other side of the seesaw, "Okay, you sit over there."

It was pretty funny watching Thor lower himself onto the little seat of the seesaw. His side of the seesaw instantly lowered to the ground while theirs quickly shot up. All three of them screamed and grabbed onto each other for balance while Thor laughed and pushed his side of the seesaw up a little so that the beam was even.

Thor looked pretty ridiculous scrunched up on the tiny beam and as she looked at him, she felt her fear of him melt away. Even though he looked like he could probably lift a car, he wasn't scary.

* * *

May finished replying to her last email. It had taken a while to get through her inbox, well over an hour, and it was probably time for she and Skye to head home and help Phil with dinner. She put her phone away and looked around for her daughter. Usually it took a little while to find her, Skye was small and liked to climb all over the play structures so sometimes it was hard to spot her, but she easily caught sight of her child and her friends.

When they had first arrived at the playground, Skye had been acting odd. She knew that it was probably because she had never met Thor before, the fact that he was very tall and imposing probably didn't help her feel comfortable around him, but she hadn't asked in front of him because she didn't want to embarrass her. She knew that Thor was a big teddy bear, that Skye's fear of him was definitely misplaced, and she assumed that Skye had warmed up to her friend's foster father by now.

Apparently she had assumed correctly because she was currently making her way towards her daughter and her friends, all three of whom were climbing all over Thor. They were standing by the sandpit in the shade. Thor kept lifting one arm up and down and Thomas, who was hanging off of it, held on tight as he laughed. Grant was standing on one of his foster dad's feet and Thor walked in a circle, exaggeratedly lifting his legs so that Grant had to wrap both of his arms around Thor's leg so that he didn't fall off. Her daughter, who had obviously gotten over her fear of Thor, had her little arms wrapped around his shoulders and was hanging off of his back. Thor had reached an arm back so that he could support her, something she was grateful for. Even though he was basically a big kid himself, Thor was responsible and she knew that he was a wonderful father.

She hated to break up the fun but it was starting to get dark out and she knew that Skye had some homework to finish before dinner. No one noticed her as she approached them so she put her hands on her hips and cleared her throat.

The three kids made sounds of protest as Thor stopped what he was doing and gave her a sheepish look, "I was just, uh…"

Thor let to sentence trail off and she just smirked at him, "Turning into a human jungle gym?"

He just shrugged and smiled down at Grant, who was patting his thigh in an attempt to get him to start moving again. She could obviously see that the Ward brothers and Thor had a great relationship, something that she was immensely happy for given their past with abusive male figures in their lives. She was relieved that they had been placed with Jane and Thor. She knew that they would be able to give Grant and Thomas the love and safety that they deserved.

Focusing on her daughter, she motioned for Skye to get off of Thor, "Come on sweetie, it's almost dinner time."

She watched as Skye frowned and gripped Thor's shoulders tighter, "Can we stay a little longer?"

She shook her head, "You have homework. If you would've done it before we left, maybe you would be able to stay longer. I'm sorry baby, we have to go."

Skye sighed and loosened her hold on Thor so that she could jump to the ground. Her daughter looked at Grant, "I hate homework."

Grant nodded sympathetically, "So do I."

Her daughter craned her neck so that she could see Thor's face, "Can we play next week?"

"Sure Skye. I'm sure we'll be able to set up a play date."

Skye turned back to Grant, "I'll see you next week." She then leaned in close to Grant and lowered her voice in an attempt to talk quietly, an attempt that epically failed, "I like your dad."

Grant tried to whisper back, which was about as successful as Skye's attempt, "I do too."

Skye smiled and she watched as her daughter said goodbye to her friends before making her way over to her. She said goodbye to everyone and grabbed onto Skye's hand as they began walking back home.

Skye skipped beside her and said, "I like Thor, even though he has a funny name."

She couldn't help but laugh and agree.

* * *

What'd you guys think? Let me know, it makes me happy to read your reviews :)

Also, maybe check out SkyeWard17's kid!fic if you're looking for another one to read? I know that I can never find enough kid!fics to read :) If you guys have any fic recs (they don't have to be kid!fics) I would love to hear them! I haven't been reading as many fics as I usually do and I'm trying to start up again because it inspires me to write out mine and I feel like I've been in a slump lately :) Thank you so much for reading! You're all lovely xx -Ariel


	26. Skye Has A Tantrum

**Hey guys! This was inspired by trshr . nclx's prompt: 'What if May and Skye have a fight and Skye chooses to ignore her despite May's many many efforts for them to get along?' I changed it up a little bit, mainly because I couldn't see Melinda as the type of parent who would tolerate her children acting that way :)**

 **I survived my first week as a sophomore and I can already tell that this semester is totally going to kick my ass! That being said, I could really use some new fics to read to distract me from my ever-growing workload :) If you have any suggestions, please let me know! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Usually, Skye was a ridiculously well-behaved child. Mel wasn't sure how she had lucked out with such a laidback and easygoing kid but she wasn't going to question it.

Skye almost always followed the rules, even if she didn't particularly like them. It was sometimes amazing to her, that Skye would just willingly do what she was told without putting up much of a fight, especially considering how Natasha had been as a child. Skye hardly ever yelled, she always did what she was told even if she didn't want to, and she almost _never_ got into fights with family members.

Even with Skye being so well-behaved, every kid had their off days and Melinda knew that this was one for Skye. It didn't help that her daughter was cranky from lack of sleep due to nightmares and the fact that their air conditioning was broken in the middle of September wasn't helping anyone's mood. Since she had woken up, May had known that Skye was extra irritable. Her daughter had gotten upset when she had asked her about her nightmares and had possessed a little attitude when she had picked her up from school. It wasn't normal for Skye to act this way but she knew kids weren't perfect, they had bad days just like everyone else, and she was just hoping they could get through this one without there being an outburst.

Apparently that was too much to ask for.

* * *

Skye gripped her pencil tightly and tried to focus on her homework but it was too hard and she couldn't concentrate on it.

Today hadn't been a very good day so far. It had started off bad with a nightmare that woke her up in the middle of the night and had kept her awake until the morning. It had stayed bad when the air conditioning repair guy said that he couldn't come in until tomorrow to fix theirs for them so their house was uncomfortably warm. She had gotten in a fight with Fitz over something stupid at school, she honestly couldn't even remember what had started the fight, and that made her feel sad and upset.

Today was _bad_ and she just wanted it to be over but it _wasn't_ and she was stuck sitting next to her mom who was trying to help her with her math homework but it was just too _hard_ for her to understand.

She kind of just wanted to go to her room and shut her door and play with her dolls by herself and this was a weird feeling because she _loved_ her mom and the rest of her family and she always loved being around them… except for right now apparently.

She chewed on her pencil as her mom tried to explain the math problem to her but it felt like her mom was speaking in a different language and she was feeling so s _tupid_ that she couldn't take it anymore. She threw her pencil on the table and watched as it rolled over the edge and onto the floor.

She crossed her arms and her mom said, "Skye, we don't throw things in this house. Pick that up please."

She didn't move for a second before angrily bending down and grabbing her pencil from the floor. She gripped it tight in her hand and stared at the table even as her mom tried to get her attention so that she could continue explaining the math question on her homework.

She heard her mom sigh and saw her turn in her seat so that she was facing her, "Skye, what's wrong?"

Letting out an irritated breath, she said, "I can't do it!"

She hadn't meant for her voice to be as loud as it was but she didn't apologize for it like she usually would have. She was in a bad mood today.

"That's why I'm explaining it to you sweetie. What don't you understand?"

She threw her hands up, "Any of it!"

Her mom studied her for a second before rubbing a hand over her face and sighing, "Okay, why don't you take a break and we can try again in half an hour?"

She shook her head, "I still won't understand it in half an hour!"

Skye watched as May's face hardened a little and her mom gave her a stern look, "Not with an attitude like that young lady. What's going on with you Skye?"

If Skye knew why she was in such a bad mood, she would gladly tell her mom what was going on with her but she honestly didn't know why she was acting like this. Either way, she couldn't stop herself from growing angrier and more stubborn.

She stuck her chin out, "Nothing. I don't want to do my homework."

Her mom shook her head, "I'm sorry but you need to finish it."

Skye felt really warm and she jumped out of her seat and glared at her mom, "No! I don't want to do it!"

May tilted her head at her and gave her an incredulous look. She had never yelled at her mom like that, she had never really yelled at _anyone_ like this before. There was no good reason for yelling like this other than the fact that it made the unsettling itching feeling of aggravation that had taken root inside of her slightly dissipate.

May's voice held a warning in it, "Skye…"

She stomped her foot and put her hands on her hip, "I don't want to do it! I'm not doing it, you can't make me!"

Her mom raised an eyebrow and stared at her. For some reason, her mom's lack of response made her feel compelled to keep talking, "You can't make me do it, I don't want to!"

Her mom continued to stare at her quietly and Skye wasn't really sure what to do so she crossed her arms and stared at the table angrily.

It was silent for a few moments until her mom spoke up, "Are you finished?"

She didn't say anything, she just continued to stare at the table.

She heard her mom let out a sigh, "Skye, if you would let me help you, we could figure out this homework. Are you ready to try again?"

Biting the inside of her cheek, she stayed silent.

This time when her mom spoke up, her voice was firmer, "Listen up young lady, I know this house is pretty laidback but your father and I don't tolerate temper tantrums. Like it or not, we're the ones who make the rules around here, not you. Are you ready to act like a big girl and talk to me or are you going to stand here and be quiet for the rest of the night? Because we aren't leaving this table until you finish your homework."

The fact that her mom thought that she wasn't being a big girl made her angrier while simultaneously causing her to deflate a little. She didn't know why she was acting this way and it wasn't fun to fight with her mom, it was making her feel worse.

Torn between not wanting to be the one to give in first and break the silence and wanting to beg her mom to forgive her for being so mean, she took her hands off of her hips and looked up at her mom's face.

May nodded at her, "Good. Do you want to talk about what's going on with you? You normally don't act this way."

She shrugged, "I'm angry."

Her mom gave her a questioning look, "Because of your homework?"

Letting out a breath, she shook her head, "No, well a little bit. I don't know, I just feel angry."

Nodding, her mom's face softened and she reached out to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes, "I'm sorry you're angry but that doesn't give you the right to act this way, understand?"

She nodded.

"Good, now do you want to talk about _why_ you're angry?"

She really didn't, "No, I kind of just want to be alone."

She had expected her mom to be upset that she wanted to be alone but she just nodded in understanding, "Alright, you can hang out in your room once we finish this."

The finality in her mom's tone left no room for discussion and Skye peered at her, "You aren't going to make me say sorry?"

"You should only say it when you mean it. Are you sorry?"

She still felt angry but she felt even more terrible about being so rude to her mom, "Yes, I'm really sorry for being so mean."

May nodded, "I forgive you."

She sat back down in her chair and listened as her mom explained the math problem on her worksheet. It took about twenty minutes for her to finish her homework and she shoved it back into her backpack before standing up.

She felt a hand grab her arm and her mom kept her from leaving, "You know Skye, it's alright to feel angry sometimes. Next time, talk to someone before it gets to the point where you explode like that okay? It's not fun for anyone when you're that unhappy, and it especially isn't fun for you."

Her mom was right, it hadn't been fun when she had exploded like that. If anything, in addition to feeling angry, she now felt guilty. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around May's neck and gave her a quick hug, "I'm sorry mommy."

Her mom patted her back, "I know baby. Why don't you go spend some time with yourself in your room. I'll let you know when dinner's ready."

She gave her mom a grateful look, she was relieved to know that her mom understood that she really just wanted some alone time right now, and made her way up to her room. She still felt pretty bad for yelling at May but at least she knew that she had been forgiven for being so bad. She walked up the stairs, into her room, and gently shut the door.

* * *

Melinda May definitely wouldn't put up with temper tantrums! Let me know what you guys thought and don't forget to go vote on the poll for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, or reviewed this fic! xx -Ariel


	27. Skye Wonders Where Babies Come From

**Hey guys! This was inspired by Shievi and Uma FicWriter's prompt: 'Skye wonders where babies come from.'**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like written out next. Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye stared and stared and stared at the lady who was standing at the front of her class.

It was Career Week at school and her mom and dad had come in yesterday. She had been extremely proud of how interested her class had been in her parents careers. Ms. Hill had had to ask her mom and dad to stay until after recess so that everyone could finish asking them all their questions. It had been _awesome_. Today, Gracie's mom was talking to them. She was a real estate agent and while her stories weren't as interesting as _her_ parents'… the reason that Skye couldn't stop staring at her was because her belly was super big.

She knew that there was a baby in there, Gracie had proudly told her that she was going to be a big sister in two months. She was six, not an idiot, but she wasn't sure how the baby had gotten in there.

She had never really seen a pregnant person up close before. She had seen them in stores and walking down the street but she had never really thought much about it. Now that she was looking at a pregnant lady up close… she had questions.

Mrs. Black's tummy was _really_ big. She had to waddle around the classroom and she kept putting her hands over it like she was afraid it was going to bump into something. Was her tummy heavy? Did it hurt to walk around with a baby in there? How did the baby even get there? The only reasonable explanation that she could think of was that Mrs. Black had swallowed it but she didn't think that that was what had happened. That just sounded dumb.

She tried to listen to what Mrs. Black was saying but she couldn't stop staring at her tummy. For half an hour, she tried to focus on the questions that her classmates were asking but all she could think about was the questions swirling around in her head.

When Ms. Hill clapped her hands, Skye _finally_ snapped out of it and focused on her surroundings, "Okay guys, let's get ready for recess. Please say thank you to Mrs. Black for taking the time to come and speak with us today."

The class chorused out their thank you's and got ready to go play outside. She watched as Mrs. Black talked to Ms. Hill and she found herself walking up to the two of them.

She stepped up next to them and waited for them to notice her. Mrs. Black was the first one to see her, "Hi."

Skye nervously smiled up at her, "Hi."

Mrs. Hill gave her an amused look, "Do you need anything Skye?"

She was face to face with Mrs. Black's tummy and she couldn't help it, "Can I touch your belly?"

Gracie's mom smiled at her, "Of course." Mrs. Black grabbed onto her hand and gently guided it so that her palm was pressed against it. It didn't feel soft like most tummies, it felt different, and she quickly yanked her hand back.

She grabbed onto her moon pendant and twirled it around in her fingers, "Um, how did your baby get in there?"

She made sure to point at Mrs. Black's tummy so that she knew what she was talking about.

Mrs. Black and Ms. Hill gave each other a look and Ms. Hill stepped towards her, "I think that's a question for you to ask your parents sweetie. C'mon, it's recess time."

Her teacher ushered her away and Skye let her attempt to distract her with recess and other things but for the rest of the day, Skye kept wondering about her question.

She turned to her friends, "How did Gracie's mom get her baby in her tummy?"

Fitz gave her a look like she was stupid, "Duh, the stork brought it."

Jemma elbowed him in the stomach, "That's not what happens!"

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't!"

It was pretty much useless to try and get information from them after that. She just rolled her eyes and decided to wait to ask her parents when she got home. They would tell her the real story, not something dumb about a _bird_ putting a baby in someone's tummy. That was just stupid.

* * *

She waited until dinner to ask, "Where do babies come from?"

Her dad had been sipping his glass of water and started spluttering. Her brother and sister both looked back and forth between her mom and dad and Skye patiently waited for an answer.

Nattie clapped her dad on the back and he caught his breath. Her sister grabbed Trip's arm, stood up, and tugged on it, "C'mon, let's go."

Trip grinned, "Nah, I wanna hear this."

Nattie just pulled him out of the room.

Brushing her siblings' weird behavior off, she turned back to her parents, "Fitz says that a stork brings it to mommies but that sounds like it isn't true."

Her mom cracked a smile, "That's because it's _not_ true."

She couldn't help but grin because she _knew_ that Fitz had been wrong. She gave them an uncertain look, "Mrs. Black didn't… swallow her baby, right?"

Her parents both shook their heads and her dad said, "No, of course not sweetie. It doesn't work like that."

She scrunched up her nose, "How does it work?"

Her mom glanced at her dad, who shrugged, before turning back to her, "Well, an egg from the mommy and sperm from the daddy comes together to make a baby."

She raised an eyebrow, "How can babies live in mommies' tummies? Isn't that where food goes?"

Her mom rested her head on her hand, "Babies don't grow in tummies, they grow in a womb. It's filled with a special fluid that helps the baby grow."

Her dad took over, "The baby grows for about nine months and then it's born."

Nine months was almost a whole year, that was a long time to have someone else growing inside of you. Even if it _did_ take forever to make a baby, it seemed easy enough.

She couldn't help but wonder why her parents hadn't made their own baby, "How come you didn't have your own baby?"

Her parents looked at each other and when her mom turned back to her, she looked a little sad, "We can't, it just wasn't meant to work for us."

Her dad stood up, made his way over to her mom, and put a hand on her shoulder, "You and your brothers and sisters were the best things to ever happen to us though. We love you just as much as we would have if you were biologically ours, you know that right?"

Of course she knew that, they told her that they loved her every single day. She had never doubted that.

She nodded and her parents smiled at her, "Good, do you have any other questions?"

She started to shake her head but then reconsidered, "Can I have ice cream?"

Her mom laughed and her dad looked relieved, "Sure, I'll go grab some." He raised his voice a little, "Trip, Nat, you can come back in here. I've got ice cream."

Her siblings came back into the room and her dad brought back a tub of ice cream and a stack of bowls. Trip glanced at him, "Did you give her the sex talk?"

She turned to her dad, "What's sex?"

Phil gave Trip a sharp look and Nattie just laughed.

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Leave me a review and let me know what you guys thought! I love reading what you guys have to say :) xx -Ariel


	28. Skye Really Can't Keep A Secret

**Hey guys! This was inspired by TrooperCam's prompt: "Can you imagine if Phil or Melinda told Skye something and Tasha and Trip tried to get it from her by giving her sugar? That would be hilarious." This was heavily influenced by that one scene in Full House between Michelle and Uncle Jesse :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! If you want to send in a prompt, you can do that either on here or on my tumblr page and I'll add it to the poll! Thanks for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye ran downstairs to get some juice and stopped when she heard Pietro's voice coming from the living room. She was pretty sure that her oldest brother was still in Europe with Wanda so she craned her neck around so that she could peer into the living room.

Her mom and dad were sitting on the couch staring at the laptop that was sitting on the coffee table in front of them. From this angle, she couldn't see the computer's screen but she heard Wanda's voice, "We should arrive around one so we can be at home to surprise everyone when they get back from school."

Wanda and Pietro were coming home! She made her way into the living room and her parents didn't even notice her until she was almost in front of them. Her mom hit her dad's arm just as he was about to say something back to Wanda, "Oh, hey sweetie! Tasha should be home from school soon and you guys can go to the park once she gets here."

She watched as her parents exchanged a look and raised an eyebrow at them. She could tell when they were trying to distract her. She moved to stand in front of them and faced to computer screen. Wanda and Pietro's faces took up the whole screen and she smiled real big at them. She hadn't seen them in a long time.

She waved at her siblings, "You guys are coming to visit? When? I miss you!"

Pietro ran a hand over his light hair, "Uh, we aren't coming to visit. What are you talking about?"

Wanda shook her head and murmured, "Smooth," under her breath.

She scrunched up her nose, "But I just heard you say that you were coming to surprise us. Were you lying?" She pointed a finger at the screen, "It's not nice to lie."

Her siblings glanced at each other before looking behind her towards her parents. Wanda gave her a guilty look and Pietro said, "You guys take care of this. Being reprimanded by my kid sister isn't fun for me."

She turned around and raised an eyebrow at her dad. He just let out a big sigh, "It was supposed to be a surprise."

Jumping up and down, she squealed in excitement and turned back towards the computer, "You guys are coming to visit? For real?"

Her brother and sister were smiling at her and Wanda pushed Pietro so that her face took up the whole screen, "For real. We'll be home on Friday and we're staying for the weekend!"

Skye clapped her hands together in excitement. Her brother and sister were coming home!

Pietro elbowed Wanda so that he could appear back on screen and threw his sister a dirty look before turning to her, "Yep, but it's a secret okay?"

She nodded, "Okay."

Her brother gave her a look, "Like a real secret."

She knew what a secret was, she wasn't dumb, "I know."

She felt her mom put a hand on her arm and turned her around, "Skye, you can't tell Trip or Tasha okay? We really want to surprise them."

Skye raised a hand to her lips and imitated turning a key into a lock, "I can keep it a secret, I promise!"

Her parents smiled at her and she turned back around so that she could talk to Wanda and Pietro. They told her about their latest adventures in Germany and how they only had a couple weeks left in this semester so they'll be back home for good soon. She excitedly told them about how her class was putting on a play about animals who lived in the Amazon rainforest and they made May and Phil promise to record it for them.

They said their goodbyes and she stayed in the living room to watch tv with her parents for a couple minutes until the front door slammed open and Trip and Nattie walked in. They both dropped their backpacks on the floor by their door even though they knew their dad would tell them to pick up after themselves, which he did, before sitting on the floor in the living room.

Nattie laid down face first on the floor while Trip sat with his back against the couch. Skye climbed off of the couch and sat down by Natasha, "Did you have a bad day?"

Her sister groaned and when she spoke, her words were a little muffled, "We had a pop quiz in history."

Nattie sounded miserable so she reached forward and patted the top of her head, "It's okay."

Her sister turned her head so that Skye could see her give her a half-smile, "Thanks маленькая звезда. Today just hasn't been the greatest."

Without thinking, she said, "I know what'll make you feel better! We were talking to-"

Her dad coughed loudly and said, "Skye!"

She instantly stopped talking and looked back at him guiltily. She hadn't even realized she was about to tell Nattie the secret, she was just trying to help cheer her sister up.

Natasha sat up and brushed her hair away from her face, "What? Who were you talking to?"

She shook her head, "No one!"

Trip set his phone down and gave her a look that said he didn't believe her, "What are you guys hiding?"

Her mom stood up and pointed at Nattie and Trip, "We aren't hiding anything. You guys go and do your homework."

Her brother and sister glanced at each other before Natasha exclaimed, "I don't even have any homework!"

Her mom just grabbed onto her hand and helped her to her feet, "Well then go read a book or something."

Skye interjected, "I thought you said that we could go to the park when they got home."

She watched as her mom glanced over to her dad, who just shook his head, before turning back to her, "I think it's going to rain later, it'll be better if you just stay here. I'll get your watercolors set up in the kitchen and you can paint."

She easily forgot about the park. She didn't get to use her watercolor paint often, it was messy and it was a hassle to clean up, so she eagerly stood up and pushed her mom up the stairs and towards the playroom where the paint was.

* * *

She was happily painting at the dining room table, trying to get the paint on her paper rather than the newspaper underneath it, when her mom walked up to her and leaned over her shoulder, "I like your sunset sweetie."

Skye smiled up at her, "Thanks mommy, I'm gonna give it to Pietro."

Her mom smiled at her, "He'll love it. I've got to get a few things from the grocery store, I'll be back in a little bit. Your dad's upstairs ok? Tell him when you're ready to clean up so that he can help."

She nodded and May leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead before grabbing the car keys and walking out the door.

She went back to her sunset, she wanted it to be perfect so that her brother would love it when she saw him on Friday, and didn't notice that Nattie and Trip were standing across from her until Trip cleared his throat.

She looked up at the noise and set her paintbrush down, "Hi! Do you wanna paint with me?"

They both shook their heads and crossed their arms over their chests. Trip gave her a suspicious look, "Do you have anything you'd like to tell us?"

Shaking her head vehemently, she said, "Nope. Nothing."

Nattie squinted at her, "We know you have a secret Skye."

She widened her eyes and tried to give them an innocent look. She couldn't spill the secret, "No I don't!"

Nattie looked over to Trip and nodded her head at him. He walked towards the kitchen and she said, "Alright, are you sure you don't have a secret?"

She forcefully shook her head, "I don't."

Trip came back into the dining room with a handful of supplies. He sat on one side of her while Nattie sat on the other side. Trip pushed a bowl in front of her and she saw that it had a brownie sitting on the bottom of it. She pointed to it, "Is that a brownie?"

Her brother nodded, "Yep, it's the last one."

Nattie reached across her and grabbed the tub of chocolate ice cream. Her sister took the lid off the ice cream and started scooping some into the bowl, "Are you _absolutely sure_ you don't have a secret?"

She stared at the three giant scoops of ice cream that covered the chocolate brownie in the bowl, "Um… I can't tell you."

Nattie gave Trip a triumphant grin, "So there _is_ a secret!"

Trip grabbed the squirt bottle of Hershey's chocolate fudge and started pouring it over the ice cream, "What's it about? Are we going on a vacation?"

She watched as the chocolate fudge cascaded down the ice cream, "I'm not supposed to say anything." She pointed at the ice cream, "You missed a spot."

Trip picked the bottle back up, "Right." He poured the fudge so that it covered all of the ice cream.

Nattie grabbed some whipped cream and started putting it on top of the ice cream, "I would really like to share this brownie sundae with you."

Her sister continued to layer on the whipped cream and Skye stared at it longingly, "Yeah, I'd like that too."

Trip grabbed the can of whipped cream and squirted some into his mouth while Nattie pushed the bowl in front of Skye, "Well, let's talk about that secret."

Skye stared at the delectable treat in front of her. She couldn't tell them the secret, she had told her parents that she wouldn't. She shook her head but it wasn't as forceful as she wanted it to be.

Nattie reached over and put a spoon into her hand, "Why don't you hold this for me."

She held the spoon tightly in her hand and stared at the bowl in front of her.

Trip grabbed a container and started pouring it over the ice cream, "I'm just going to add these rainbow sprinkles."

She loved those. Licking her lips, she looked over to him, "Rainbow sprinkles?"

He made sure that the ice cream had a healthy amount of sprinkles on it before setting the container back on the table, "Mhmm."

She pointed to the other container on the table, "Are those mini-M&M's?"

Nattie nodded and slowly started sprinkling them over the ice cream, "Of course." She set the M&M's down and grabbed a cherry. She waved the cherry in front of her face and Skye's eyes followed its every move, "I know how much you love cherries."

Her sister kept waving the cherry in front of her face until she broke down. She spoke really, really quickly, "Wanda and Pietro are coming to visit on Friday, now drop that cherry!"

Her sister laughed triumphantly and dropped the cherry on top of the ice cream. Skye pulled the bowl of ice cream closer to her and scooped up a giant spoonful before shoving it into her mouth. She knew that she was getting chocolate and whipped cream all over her face but she didn't care.

Trip clapped his hands, said, "I knew there was a secret!" and squirted some more whipped cream into his mouth.

Nattie rested her head on her hands, "They're flying in on Friday?"

She nodded and spoke with a mouthful of junk food, "Yeah, they're gonna be here when you get home from school." She swallowed and pointed to the bowl full of cherries, "Can I have another cherry?"

Her sister grabbed three and dropped them into her bowl, "Thanks Skye."

She just shoved another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth, "Mhmm."

She looked up when she heard a throat clearing.

Her mom was standing there with her eyebrows raised, holding a paper bag full of groceries and tapping her foot. She gave her mom a guilty look and May frowned at Nattie and Trip, "You two should be ashamed of yourselves."

Nattie shoved a handful of M&M's into her mouth and made Trip answer, "All we did was give her some ice cream!"

May didn't look like she believed him one bit.

She shoved a spoonful of brownie into her mouth and spoke around it, "'M sorry."

Her mom just shook her head and gave her a small smile, "We knew the cat was pretty much out of the bag sweetie, it's alright."

She held a cherry out as a peace offering and her mom set the bag of groceries down before sitting across from her and carefully pulling away Skye's painting so that it didn't get anything on it. May took the cherry from her and bit into it, "Thanks sweetie."

Skye shrugged and offered her a giant spoonful of brownie, ice cream, and fudge. She fed her mom and giggled when she got some fudge on the side of her mouth. She was pretty good at keeping secrets, except when there was ice cream involved.

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What's you guys think? Thank you so much for reading you beautiful angel! xx -Ariel


	29. Skye Really Can't Keep A Secret Part 2

**Hey guys! Marvel-Tolkien Fangirl sent in, "As punishment, Nat and Trip should have to keep Skye under control until the sugar high wears off," and I thought that that was a brilliant idea so this is a continuation of the last chapter. I hope you like it!**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Natasha regretted bribing her little sister about an hour later when she was all hyped up on sugar. Six year olds with sugar rushes were never fun to deal with.

Skye was running circles around her in the living room. She was sitting in a chair _trying_ to focus on the rom-com playing in front of her but she couldn't because the adorable little devil that was her sister kept giggling in her ear.

Skye had on her Rapunzel tiara, her Captain America costume, and a pink tutu. She was waving Alice around in one hand, pretending to make her fly, as she ran circles around the chair that Nat was sitting in. She adored her little sister, loved her more than almost anything in the whole world, but right now, Skye was driving her nuts.

She leaned her head against the back of the chair, "Skye, can you go run around somewhere else? I'm trying to watch a movie."

Her little sister continued to giggle and skip in circles, "No, I like being here with you!"

It was cute that Skye liked hanging out with her but it was too much right now, "Mom! Could you tell Skye to go play somewhere else? I can't hear Ryan Reynolds!"

Her mom walked into the living room and crossed her arms, "He's saying the exact same thing that he said the last time you watched this movie. Besides, you're the one who bribed her with ten pounds of sugar, you have to deal with her until it wears off."

Nat gaped as her mom smirked at her and walked back into the dining room, "But Trip bribed her too!"

Her mom didn't say anything and she groaned. She sat up and reached an arm out, catching Skye along the waist and preventing her from circling the chair a _gain_. Her little sister's momentum propelled her forward and Nat had to wrap another arm around her back so that Skye didn't fall over.

Skye gave her a questioning look, "Hey, Alice was just starting to fly! You made her mess up!"

She let out a breath, "Why don't you go play with Trip?"

She watched as Skye considered it, "Will you come and play with us?"

That wasn't really part of the plan here, "Actually, I was going to finish watching-"

Her mom cut her off from the dining room, "Natasha! Go play with your sister! You and your brother are in charge of her until she comes down from her sugar high!"

If she would have known that a simple little bribe would have accumulated to all this… she probably would have still done it. That wasn't the point though, the point was that there were only a few days where she didn't have any homework and on those days, she liked to watched stupid, mushy movies and chill out. This was _not_ chilling out.

Her little sister was looking at her hopefully and she relented, "Trip's in his room, let's go."

Skye squealed and grabbed onto her hand. Her little sister pulled her out of the living room and up the stairs. For such a tiny person, she was pretty strong when she wanted to be. When they got to the top of the staircase, Skye let go of her hand and ran ahead of her towards Trip's room. She just sighed and followed behind her.

When she walked into her brother's room, she wasn't surprised to see Skye already jumping up and down on his bed. Trip, who was lying down on the bed that their little sister was jumping on, tried to avoid getting stepped on as he gave her a confused look. She just shrugged.

Trip sat up and grabbed Skye mid-jump. She laughed and wiggled around until he set her back down and she hopped off the bed. Nat sat down next to her brother and watched as Skye ran around the room. Her little sister made Alice jump off every available surface and she dragged her hands along the wall as she ran past them.

Trip stared after their hurricane of a little sister, "What's…happening right now?"

She sighed again, "Mom's punishing us."

"She sent Skye up here to terrorize me?"

She looked over at Trip, who was still staring after Skye, and let out a dramatic groan, "We have to look after her until she comes down from her sugar high."

Trip was silent for a moment and she turned back just as Skye bumped into his desk. A couple of books fell down and Skye dropped Alice as she held her knee in both hands and started jumping up and down on one foot, "Ow! Ow, ow, ow!"

She stood up and grabbed Alice from the floor before putting a hand on Skye's shoulder to steady her. Skye looked up at her with her big brown eyes and frowned, "I hurt my knee!"

Nat bent down and placed a kiss on the top of Skye's kneecap, "There, it's all better now."

Trip fixed his fallen books and turned to Skye, "I don't know when you turned into a little tornado but I don't think my room will survive. Maybe you should play somewhere else."

Skye took Alice from her hands and seemingly forgot about her injured knee, "We can go play outside! You can push me on the swings!"

Trip looked out his window, "It's like, ninety degrees outside Skye."

Her little sister either didn't hear him or didn't care because she grabbed onto his hand and tugged on it, "Please! C'mon please! Please, please, please, please-"

Nat looked over to him, "She's not going to stop until we go play outside."

Trip shook his hand to get Skye's attention, "Alright! We'll go outside, jeez."

Skye grinned and stood on her toes, "I'll race you!"

They both watched as their little sister bolted out the door. Trip shook his head, "What have we done?"

She started making her way downstairs and he followed her, "We can tire her out quickly if we don't let her stop running around. Let's just keep her moving and she'll be back to herself in no time."

They passed their mom and dad at the dining table. Their parents smirked at them and she steadily ignored them as she opened the backdoor and walked out into the near summer heat. Skye was already sitting on the swings. She was kicking her legs too quickly for it to gain any rhythm and because of that, she wasn't going very high. She waved them over, "C'mon!"

Trip gave her a sideways glance, "Just keep her moving?"

She nodded determinedly, "Yep."

* * *

Her plan wasn't working out as well as she had hoped it would.

The problem was, Skye seemed to have an unlimited amount of energy and she and Trip just couldn't seem to keep up. They had been running around outside for an hour, they were sweating and tired while Skye seemed to be fine. Every time they went to sit down or take a break, Skye would tug on their arms until they stood back up to play with her.

She was hiding in the shade behind a tree when Skye ran past her with Trip in tow. He shot her a dirty look and breathed heavily, "Your plan…is stupid… She isn't…getting tired."

She wiped a hand across her forehead so that sweat wouldn't run into her eyes and gave him an exasperated look, "Thanks Trip, I hadn't noticed."

Her little sister spotted her and she groaned quietly as Skye ran over to her, "Nattie! Play with me!"

She didn't think that she could run around anymore. Being a dancer meant that she had a lot of stamina but Skye would give her conditioning coach a run for her money. She put a hand on her hip and tried to look like she wasn't currently dying as she desperately tried to catch her breath, "Don't you want to do something else? We've been playing tag for a long time already."

Skye thoughtfully put a finger to her lips, "We could jump rope! Or have a cartwheel contest! Oh, I know! We can ride our bikes!"

All of those things sounded terrible right now and judging by the look on Trip's face, he thought so too. When was this kid going to mellow out?!

Maybe if she got Skye into a calmer setting, she would chill out a little bit, "Why don't we go watch Frozen? Trip and I will sing the songs with you."

Trip started to protest but she shot him the dirtiest look she could manage while still slightly out of breath.

Skye got an excited look on her face and spun around in a circle, "Really? Nattie, you can be Elsa and I'll be Anna and Trip can be Hans and Kristoff! Come on!"

Their sister grabbed both of their hands and Nat couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as she walked into the house and felt the cool air hit her overheated face. Thankfully, her parents were no longer at the table. She didn't want them to see the little Frozen concert that was about to happen here.

Trip set up the movie while she got some water for everyone. She brought three cups into the living room and was about to collapse onto the couch but Skye prevented her from doing it, "No! You have to dance with me too!"

She pointed to the screen, "It hasn't even started yet!"

Skye fixed her tiara so that it wasn't teetering on her head anymore and stomped her foot so that her tutu bounced up and down, "Please? It'll be like a party!"

She groaned but remained standing as the opening scene started. Skye danced circles around her and Trip and complained until they started dancing too. She did some weird hand motions while Trip swayed from side to side but it seemed to make their sister happy so it was fine with her.

Once the first song was over, Skye _still_ wouldn't let them sit down. She pretended to be all the characters and spoke their lines for them while running around the room. It was honestly giving her a headache to watch all this movement.

Skye yelled at them every time they tried to sit down so they remained standing throughout the movie. Trip begrudgingly sang all the parts that he was assigned to sing by Skye, she made fun of him for knowing all the words and that made Skye grin.

She was currently singing Let It Go because apparently s _he_ was Elsa. Skye didn't have to tell her to dance, she had already been reprimanded before she didn't need to again, so she was doing the dramatic hand-movements that Elsa was doing in the movie, "Let it go, let it go, can't hold it back anymore-"

Trip interrupted her, "Nat."

She waved a hand at him and kept singing. She didn't need to get yelled at by her kid sister, "Let it go, let it go, turn away and slam the door."

Trip interrupted her again, "Natasha."

Frustrated, she turned around, "What? I'm trying to-"

She paused when she caught sight of Skye.

Her little sister had fallen asleep _on top of the coffee table_. Her Rapunzel tiara was sliding off her head and her cheek was resting on the top of her hand. The table was hard wood and it didn't look very comfortable but Skye was out like a light.

Nat gave Trip a hopeful look and whispered, "Is she really asleep?"

Trip shrugged and started tip-toeing away, "I don't know but I'm not going to be around if she wakes up."

She couldn't argue with that. She silently followed him out of the living room and escaped upstairs to freedom.

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What'd you guys think? Listen, when I nannied this summer, the kid's mom would always give him a bunch of candy before I got to their house so he would be bouncing off the freaking walls when I got there. Children that are all hyped up on sugar are _terrible_.

Let me know your thoughts and if you have a prompt for me, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page (also you should totally come say hi to me on tumblr, I like talking to you guys :P ) and I'll add it to the poll! Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	30. Skye's Afraid of Needles

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in my inkblot29 and charlotteredmond99: "What about Skye's first trip to the doctor and May finds out that her little baby is terrified of needles?" I changed it from May to Phil because I really love their little father/daughter relationship and I kind of feel like I've been neglecting him.**

 **Don't forget to go check out the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written next. If you have a prompt, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page and I'll add it to the poll :) Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye played with the half-broken toys in the waiting room while she and her dad patiently waited for her doctor to call them back. She didn't know _why_ she was at the doctor's, she felt fine, but her dad said that she needed to have a checkup. She could check herself over: she was perfectly fine.

She abandoned her puppy puzzle, it was missing pieces anyways, and climbed onto her dad's lap, "I'm not sick daddy, why are we here?"

Phil smoothed a hand over her hair, "The doctor is just gonna give you a regular check-up to make sure you're growing right and everything is fine."

Letting out a dramatic sigh, she leaned into his chest, "Can we get ice cream after?"

Her dad laughed, "If you're really good, we can."

She raised a fist in triumph and told herself that she was going to be _really_ good because she wanted some chocolate chip ice cream. Remaining silent, she played with her dad's hands for a few minutes until a nice looking lady walked through a door and called her name.

Phil set her down on the ground and she grabbed onto his hand and followed the lady into an exam room. She was wearing scrubs with smiley faces on them and she motioned for Skye to sit on the chair-table thingy, "The doctor will be here in a few minutes."

Her dad thanked the nurse and helped Skye onto the table. She scrunched up her nose as that paper covering the table crinkled beneath her. She swung her feet back and forth and her dad took a step back. It felt weird sitting on this big exam table by herself so she whined and made grabby hands at Phil, "I don't want to be up here."

Dragging one of the chairs closer to her, her dad sat down, reached up, and held onto her hand. It made her feel better.

She kept kicking her feet and her dad rubbed his thumb over her hand until the doctor knocked on the door and walked in.

The doctor smiled at her, "Is this the Coulson family?"

Her dad nodded and she waved shyly.

"It's great to meet you, I'm Anya." The doctor focused on her, "You must be Skye."

Anya was pretty and Skye could just tell that she was really nice. It was in the way that she held herself, and the fact that she hadn't stopped smiling since she walked in didn't hurt. Her nails were painted a bright peach color, her hair was black and curly, and she wore purple scrubs with little white polka dots on them. Skye knew that she was going to like her.

She nodded, "Yep, I'm Skye."

Anya walked up and offered her hand. Skye always loved it when grown-ups wanted to shake her hand, it made her feel like a big girl.

Skye shook it and smiled. Anya's grin grew impossibly bigger, "I'm gonna do a quick check-up. If you or your dad have any questions, feel free to ask alright?"

She nodded and watched as Anya grabbed a few things from the counter and brought them over, "I'm going wrap this around your arm and check your blood pressure okay? It's going to get tight but it shouldn't hurt, if it does, tell me."

Skye had to let go of her dad's hand so that Anya could wrap the cuff around her upper arm. It got kind of tight and was a little uncomfortable but it wasn't so bad. Anya read of some numbers that she didn't understand but told her that her blood pressure was great. Anya then checked her eyes and ears and made her stand up so that she could weigh her and measure her height.

Anya helped her back onto the uncomfortable table and checked her clipboard, "Well, you seem to be very healthy Skye."

Skye _knew_ that she was healthy, she had told her dad that multiple times, but it was nice hearing it from her doctor, "How tall am I?"

She was taller than Jemma but shorter than everyone else in her class. Lincoln liked to hold things above his head and make her jump for them.

Her doctor glanced at her chart again, "You just cleared the three feet mark. You're height and weight is a little lower than the average but that's nothing to be concerned about at this point."

Groaning, she said, "When am I going to get taller?"

Her dad laughed and Anya wandered back over to the counter so that she could grab a rolling chair over to them, "At your age, you're about to start growing very quickly so don't be surprised when the next time you come in, you've gained a few inches."

She hoped that she would grow quickly.

Anya glanced at her dad and then to her, "I'm going to ask your dad a few questions alright?"

She nodded and moved back on the exam table so that she could pull her legs under her.

Anya faced her dad, "How many hours of sleep does Skye get each night?"

"About ten, usually a little more on the weekends."

Nodding, Anya wrote that down on her clipboard, "Good eating habits?"

"Yep."

"Is she eating things from each food group?"

Phil nodded, "Yes, she especially likes fruit."

Skye spoke up, "Apples are my favorite!"

Anya grinned at her, "Apples are delicious, aren't they?"

Her doctor turned back to her dad, "Does she get at least an hour of physical activity in each day?"

"Usually more than an hour. She's a little energizer bunny."

Skye didn't know what that meant but Anya seemed pleased by it. She kept asking her dad questions until she set her pen down and nodded, "Everything seems good. I'll just update her immunizations and you guys can be on your way. How does that sound Skye?"

She hopefully turned to her dad, "We can get ice cream then, right?"

Phil nodded, "Yes, you've been very good."

She clapped her hands together but felt some of her happiness dissipate when Anya walked over to her holding a tray with two different needles. She pointed an accusing finger at the tray, "What's that for?"

Anya set the tray down but Skye still scooted back on the table so that there was some distance between her and it. She looked over to her dad but he had a calm look on his face. She knew that it was dumb to be afraid of needles but they _hurt_ and the thought of them poking into her body was _terrible_.

Anya held her arms up in a placating manner, "I have to update your vaccines so you're going to need two little shots."

She shook her head vehemently, "No, I don't want them."

Her dad spoke up, "You need them if you're going to be healthy sweetheart."

She just shook her head again, "No!"

Standing up, her dad walked over to her. Anya got out of his way so that he could stand in front of her. She scooted towards the edge of the table, wrapped her arms around him, and buried her face in his chest. Her dad rubbed circles onto her back, "You need to get these shots sweetie. Once you're done, we can go get ice cream, remember?"

She leaned back and looked up at him. Her vision got a little blurry when her eyes started filling with tears, "But they're going to hurt. I don't want to get hurt!"

Her dad tilted his head at her and gave her an encouraging look, "It'll only hurt for a few seconds and then it'll be over."

She didn't say anything and he continued, "It'll just feel like a little pinch. It'll hurt for a second or two and then it'll be gone. Here, try it on me."

He held his arm out and she raised her eyebrows at him. Her tears went away and she sniffled. He gave her an encouraging nod and she pinched his arm. She let go and looked back up to him, "It only hurt for a second. Can I try it on you?"

She considered it for a moment before nodding and offering him her arm. He held her elbow gently in his hand and lightly pinched her arm for a second before letting go. It hurt but the pain vanished after a few moments.

Phil smiled at her, "See? You can't even feel it anymore."

He was right but she still wasn't happy about having to get two shots, "Why do I need to get two?"

Anya spoke up from behind Phil, "I could bring a nurse in and we can administer them at the same time. That way, it'll be over very quickly."

She knew that there was no way she was getting out of this so she reluctantly nodded and watched as Anya disappeared through the door. She pushed herself up and stood on the exam table before throwing her arms around her dad's neck tightly.

He wrapped her up in a hug and gently patted her back, "I think I'm going to get a chocolate milkshake, what about you?"

She couldn't help but grin, "You _always_ get a chocolate milkshake daddy."

Her dad chuckled, "That's because they're so good. Let me guess, you're going to get chocolate chip?"

She bristled, "Maybe."

The door opened up again but Skye kept her head firmly pressed against her dad's neck. Her dad had succeeded in distracting her for a few moments but she felt her anxiousness start to creep back in again.

She heard Anya speak up, "Are we ready?"

Skye didn't say anything, just held onto her dad tighter, and heard Phil say, "Is it okay if I sit with her?"

"Of course."

Phil picked her up and turned around so that he could sit on the exam table. He settled her on his lap, pressed a kiss to the top of her head, and then gently pried her arms from around his neck so that he could turn her around. She leaned back into his chest and watched as Anya and the nice-looking nurse who had brought them into this room walked towards her.

Anya ripped open a small package and held up a little square, so did the nurse, "Can you hold out your arms please? We're going to wipe this over part of your arm so that it's all clean."

She felt her dad wrap his hands around her waist and slowly held out both of her arms. Anya and the nurse gently held onto each arm and they both wiped the wet cloth over the skin beneath her shoulders. It was kind of cold.

They put the cloths down and both picked up a needle. Anya gave her an encouraging look, "Are you ready?"

Her dad gave her waist a reassuring squeeze so she nodded and shut her eyes real tight. It was better if she didn't see it coming.

She heard Anya say, "Alright, here we go."

There was a pause but then it felt like two people were pinching here arms and she whimpered. After a couple of seconds, the pain went away and she opened her eyes to see Anya and the nurse placing little bandaids over her arms.

The nurse smiled at her before walking out of the door and Anya tugged her gloves off, "You did an amazing job Skye."

"Yeah sweetheart, you were very brave. I'm so proud of you."

She pressed herself closer to her dad's chest and felt him unwrap a hand from around her waist so that he could tickle her sides. She giggled and she could hear the smile in his voice when he, "There's that laugh. You alright?"

She took stock of how she felt and nodded when she realized that she couldn't even tell where she had gotten poked. It didn't hurt anymore.

Anya walked up to her with a sheet of stickers, "Since you were so brave, I think you deserve a sticker. Pick one."

She looked over her options and chose a sticker of a puppy with its tongue hanging out. Anya peeled it off the page and handed it to her. She promptly stuck it on the back of her hand and twisted around in Phil's arm so that she could show it to him. He admired it and she grinned at him, "Ice cream time?"

He laughed and stood up with her in his arms, "I think you definitely deserve it."

She smiled in triumph and waved goodbye to Anya.

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Let me know what you guys thought! I love hearing from you :) xx -Ariel


	31. Skye Has A Tea Party

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by storybuyer: "What if Skye somehow manages to get Coulson, Steve, Bucky, Clint, Trip, and Hunter to have a dress up tea party with her? I mean, of course Coulson doesn't mind, and Clint totally plays along, but the rest of them have sworn each other to secrecy. I pictured it on a rainy day when everyone is trapped inside."**

 **The next prompt is going to be Skye's adoption day / name change / celebration. I have two friends who were adopted but one was adopted as a baby and the other one was adopted from a foreign country so they can't really give me much insight into the process. If anyone is willing to help me out here, I'd really appreciate it. I want this to be as authentic as possible!**

 **I recently got an influx of new prompts so I put a new poll up. All of the prompts that deal with Skye as a preteen or teen I took down because I'll most likely include them in the sequel (Don't worry, I won't forget about them!) :) Don't forget to vote on the new poll and thank you so much for reading! As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye shot Clint a nervous look, "Is it going to rain?"

He glanced out the living room window and tilted his head. The dark grey clouds didn't look promising and she could see leaves flying down the street because of the strong gusts of wind.

Bucky patted her knee, "The weatherman said it wasn't going to rain."

She didn't know if she trusted the weatherman so she stood up and jumped up and down on her toes, "Let's go right now while it's still okay out."

Wringing her hands, she yelled up the staircase, "Mommy! Daddy! Can we go now?"

She saw her dad's head poke over the staircase, "The fairground doesn't open 'til five sweetheart, it's only four."

Turning back to the small crowd sprawled out in her living room, she scrunched her nose up at Steve, Bucky, Bobbi, Clint, Hunter and her siblings before looking back to her dad, "Then why is everybody here already?"

Her dad smirked down at her, "Because they like to eat our food."

That seemed to be true. Everyone was passing around a bag of pretzels while Natasha and Bobbi hoarded a small bag of goldfish. She whined, "I think it's going to rain though!"

Her dad gave her a sympathetic look, "Well cross your fingers and we'll see if it's raining an hour from now."

She huffed and made her way back over to the couch. Climbing onto Bucky's lap, she stretched her legs so that they rested on top of Clint's knees and he tickled the bottom of her feet. She jerked her legs back, gave Clint a betrayed look, and leaned into Bucky's chest, "It's gonna rain, I know it."

Hunter snatched the bag of goldfish away from Bobbi and shoved some into his mouth before Bobbi took it back, "Stay hopeful love, maybe we'll get lucky."

She crossed her arms. Nattie and Trip had been telling her about the fair all week. She _really_ wanted to ride the rides and eat cotton candy and she couldn't do that in the rain.

She tried to focus on the conversation going on around her, sometimes it was hard to keep up because all the big kids talked about people she didn't really know, and by the time five o'clock rolled around, she was pretty sure she was going to explode. The sky was still ominous, the grey clouds turning darker as time progressed, but it wasn't raining. Maybe the storm would go around them.

As soon as it turned five o'clock, she hopped up, "Let's go!"

Steve smiled at her and motioned outside, "See Princess? It helps to stay positive."

Nodding at him, she picked up the car keys from the small table by the door and shoved them into her dad's hand, "Let's go!"

Everyone stood up and pulled their jackets on. Her mom helped her zip up her coat and pull a beanie over her head and as soon as she finished, Skye pulled her towards the door.

Her hand was on the doorknob when a loud crack of thunder resonated through the house. She jumped back against her mom's legs and let out a sound of protest, "No! We were so close!"

Nattie stepped by her and opened the door. She peered around her sister's body and groaned in frustration as she watched fat raindrops hit the front porch steps. The air was thick and the sky was growing darker by the minute. She hated the weather.

Her sister pulled her back inside and shut the door before turning towards everyone, "I think we'll have to reschedule."

Everyone groaned, took their coats off in defeat, and went back into the living room. She climbed onto Nattie's lap and crossed her arms. She really, really wanted to go to the fair today.

Her mom gave her a reassuring look and said, "We can go to the fair later this week sweetie, don't worry."

She let out a breath and nodded. She would rather be at the fair right now but as long as she would get there at some point, she could probably wait until later this week.

Trip looked at everyone, "They're having a Harry Potter marathon on 'abc' right now-"

Hunter interrupted them, "They have one every week."

Trip ignored him, "Wanna watch it?"

Everyone nodded and when her brother turned on the t.v., they all groaned when they saw the Error signal on the screen. This storm was ruining everything!

Hunter spoke up, "Wanna play a board game?"

Clint raised an eyebrow, "I don't think our friendship can withstand a game of Monopoly."

Hunter looked like he was about to protest but then he reconsidered and nodded, "Yeah, you're right."

Skye sat up straighter on her sister's lap, "We can have a tea party!"

Trip, Steve, Bucky, and Hunter gave each other uneasy looks while Clint looked like he was considering the offer. Bobbi and Nattie easily nodded and she beamed at them. She _loved_ tea parties. It was pretty easy to get her dad and sister to have them with her but now _all_ of her friends could have one with her. It would be so much fun!

She hopped off of her sister's lap and stood in front of Steve and Bucky. She put one hand on each of their knees and leaned towards them, "Will you have a tea party with me?"

Steve and Bucky looked at each other and she widened her eyes and stuck out her bottom lip, "Please, please, please?"

Bucky let out a sigh of defeat and Steve wasn't far behind, "Alright."

She raised a fist in victory and moved over to Trip. She knew that he was going to be harder to crack. Walking up to Trip, she threw her arms around his neck and pressed a kiss to his cheek, "You're the best brother ever. I love you."

She felt Trip's hand pat her back and he let out an amused chuckle, "I love you too."

Leaning back a little so that she could see his face, she smiled at him, "I really want to have a tea party with you."

He gave her an amused look, "You really want to?"

She nodded, kissed his cheek again, and grinned when her brother relented, "Okay."

She looked over to Hunter and he raised his hands up in defeat, "I can't just sit down here by myself now can I?"

Her parents stood up and her mom made her way into the kitchen saying, "I'll bring you guys something to drink and eat."

Her dad went to follow her mom but she grabbed onto his hand, "You'll come too, right daddy?"

Looking down, her dad nodded, "Sure sweetheart."

She clapped her hands together and pushed everyone up the stairs and into the playroom. They all sat on the ground around a low-standing table while she grabbed an armful of her dress-up clothes. Most of her princess dresses and superhero outfits were way too small for anyone else to wear so she grabbed accessories instead.

She gave Bobbi her Rapunzel tiara because she knew that Bobbi loved Tangled as much as she did. She handed Nattie three giant beaded necklaces and helped her sister wrap them around her neck so it looked like she was wearing a huge beaded scarf rather than necklaces.

She gave her dad a headband that had cat ears on them while Hunter got purple fairy wings and a headband with white flowers on it. She helped Steve put butterfly clips into his hair and Bucky laughed at him but immediately stopped when she shoved a pair of blue sparkly sunglasses onto his face and pushed her pink tutu at him. It was too small for him to wear around his waist so he pulled it up over one leg as far as it would go. Trip didn't even complain when she wrapped a neon green feather boa around his neck, he just sat there and gave her a smile.

She laughed when Clint readily grabbed the wide-framed plastic glasses and Belle tiara she offered him. He put everything on and struck a stylish pose and she giggled before sitting down between him and Hunter.

Her mom came in and set down a tray full of cookies and a pitcher full of lemonade because even though this was a tea party, she hated tea.

Her little tea set was already on the small table that they were all sitting around and she pointed at the lemonade, "Hunter, will you pour it for me? I always spill."

Hunter looked from side to side before letting out a breath and grabbing the pitcher. He started pouring lemonade into everyone's cups and grumbled, "If any of you tell anyone that I'm doing this, I'll-"

Bobbi lifted up her phone and took a picture, "You'll what?"

Hunter glared at her, "Barbara Morse, you delete that picture right now."

Bobbi gave him an innocent look, "What picture?"

He looked like he was about to respond but she patted his thigh to get his attention, "Hunter! You're going to spill!"

Glancing down at her, he mumbled an apology before focusing back on the lemonade.

She grabbed the plate full of cookies, stood up, and walked around offering some to everyone. Everyone grabbed a couple and Clint bowed down after he grabbed a cookie, "Thank you, your Majesty."

Giggling, she awkwardly curtsied, "You're welcome."

Trip picked up his tiny tea cup and brought it to his lips. His pinky finger was sticking out and she grinned. Nattie glanced at him, did a double-take, and busted out laughing. Skye had to admit that it was funny. Trip was pretty big and the cup was very small, it looked like he could crush the tiny tea cup in his palm.

Her brother shot them a dirty look, "What? I'm thirsty okay."

He sipped from his cup and set it down, "Don't tell anyone about this?"

Steve nodded in agreement.

She raised an eyebrow at him, "Why not?"

Trip fidgeted, "Because, having a tea party when you're a junior in high school isn't very cool."

She tilted her head, "I think it's cool."

Trip shrugged and she turned and watched her dad sip from his cup, his pinky raised. Her dad smiled at her, "I think it's cool too sweetie."

She scrunched her nose up at Trip and smirked, "Daddy thinks it's cool."

Her brother raised his hands up in resignation, "Okay, it's cool."

* * *

She could still hear the rain pattering against the rooftop and they were all out of lemonade and cookies. Everyone had seemed to get over their initial awkwardness and had become fully invested in the tea party. She had made up stories about princesses and superheroes and everyone nodded along and added little tidbits of information that made the stories more interesting. She was having a really fun time and she didn't want her tea party to be over.

She pointed at Bucky, "You should wear that to school."

He pulled his tutu further up on his leg and peered over his sparkly glasses at her, "You think?"

Nattie nodded, "Yeah, it's a good look for you Barnes."

Her sister held up her phone and she leaned over Clint so that she could squish herself close to Bucky before Nattie could take a picture. Bucky made a silly face and she raised a hand up to give him bunny ears before smiling widely at the camera.

She heard the camera shutter and leaned one arm heavily against Clint's stomach, making him groan in protest, before settling back down on the floor. It was quiet for a moment and she could tell that her tea party was over.

Before anyone could leave, she spoke up, "Can we have a tea party again soon?"

Bobbi, Hunter, Steve, and Bucky all nodded. She turned to Trip, "Will you come to another tea party Trip."

He grinned at her, "Yeah, I guess so kiddo."

She smiled, "Even if it isn't cool?"

Her brother shrugged, "This wasn't so bad."

She would take that as a victory.

* * *

I was going to upload this yesterday but this website was giving me so many issues! Let me know what you guys thought! I love hearing what you have to say, you beautiful gems :) If you have a prompt for me, you can send it in either in here or on tumblr (URL natalierromanova) and I'll add it to the poll. Don't forget to vote! xx -Ariel


	32. Skye Officially Gets Adopted

**Hey guys! This was inspired by Jamavee's prompt: "Skye's adoption court day and name change and the celebration afterwards." So I split up the prompt a little. This chapter has the name change and adoption court day and the next chapter will be the celebration. I wanted to do all of it in one chapter but I really wanted to post something today and I don't have time to write the rest of it. I'm sorry, I have an English narrative due tomorrow that I'm completely stuck on :/**

 **So I did a ton of research on adoptions and it turns out that the finalization process isn't the same for everyone. Some people go to an actual court room, some people go in and have the judge sign a paper for them, and some people don't even need to be present for the finalization to occur! It just depends on the case, the adoptive parents, and the legal system. If anything seems off, please let me know so that I can fix it!**

 **Don't forget to go to the new poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"You're lucky, when mom and dad adopted me and Trip, it took forever."

Skye made sure to stay still so that Nattie didn't mess up her braids, "Why did it take forever?"

Her sister finished putting her hair into two braids and caught her eye through the mirror in front of them, "Lots of paperwork. The court kept misplacing things so our finalization date kept getting pushed back."

She turned around in her seat so that she could grab her sister's pinky and intertwine it with hers, "I'm sorry."

Nattie just shook her head and helped her lace up her combat boots, "It's alright. All they do at court is sign some things and tell you that the adoption is official. I already _officially_ felt like part of the family way before that."

Skye knew what she meant. This afternoon she was going to 'officially' become a part of the Coulson family. At least, that's what Mrs. Jefferson had told her the last time they had met. Her mom and dad told her that she was already a part of this family and this was just going to make it official in the eyes of the law. Compared to how long it had taken to find a family, becoming a part of one happened fairly quickly. Of course, May and Phil had completed almost everything before they had told her about the adoption so she had only had to wait a little while before everything was complete.

Nattie made it seem like this finalization hearing was just a formality and wasn't a big deal but it kind of was a big deal to Skye. She wanted to be tied into this family in every way possible, she didn't want anyone to ever be able to say that she wasn't a Coulson, so this finalization process was kind of a huge thing for her.

She shook her foot so that Nattie would move over and she could tie up her boots, she had finally learned how to tie her shoes the right way and liked doing it herself, and murmured, "How long do we have to be at court?"

Nattie stood up and played with her hair while Skye finished tying her shoes, "Not long. I was in the waiting room longer than I was with the judge. It's easy-peasy and afterwards, we're going to have a big party with all your friends. That's the best part."

She was really excited for her party. Everyone was coming over to her house for a barbeque and she was looking forward to having everyone she loved close by.

She finished with her shoes and stood up next to Nattie. They both inspected themselves in the mirror. Skye was wearing the pink and white dress that she had worn to Nattie's dance recital and she nervously brushed out all the creases. She made sure that her boots were tightly laced and her moon necklace was securely around her neck. After making sure she looked alright, she and her sister both nodded at their reflections, intertwined their pinkies, and walked downstairs.

Trip was draped over the couch and looked up as they approached, "You beat mom and dad down here."

Skye jumped onto the couch and landed on Trip's shins. Her brother pulled his legs up and she fell unceremoniously onto the couch cushions, "What's taking them so long?"

Trip shrugged so she made herself comfortable on the couch and bugged him until he let her play some games on his phone.

She was in the middle of a very intense level of Tetris when her parents hurried downstairs. They both looked very nice and Skye smiled at them, "What took you so long?"

Her mom waved around a manila folder, "We had to make sure we had everything."

Her dad sighed, "And then we made sure we had multiple copies of everything."

Nattie and Trip gave each other a look and her dad pointed a finger at them, "We just want everything to go smoothly today."

She hopped off the couch and grabbed onto her parent's hands, "Come on, let's go. I don't want to be late."

Her mom grabbed her bag and gave her a reassuring look, "We won't be late sweetie, we have more than enough time to get there."

She didn't care. She would rather be ridiculously early than late so she shrugged and pulled them towards the door, "Let's go, let's go, let's go."

Her family humored her, they must have sensed that she was nervous about today, and loaded into the car. Nattie helped her into her booster seat and her parents played her favorite songs on the way to court. She sang along and nervously jiggled her foot the whole way.

She stared out her window and tried to tell herself to relax. Her mom and dad said that everything was all set, that it was basically guaranteed that they were going to be adopting her today, so she didn't know why she was so anxious. Even though her parents had assured that everything would be alright, she still felt like everything could backfire. Maybe the judge wouldn't like her and would tell her that she couldn't get adopted or something else could go terrible wrong. She just wanted to get there, get everything signed, and celebrate with her family.

Her dad parked the car and she watched as he opened her car door and leaned back so that he could unbuckle her car seat. Jumping out of the car, she smoothed out her dress and grabbed onto her dad's hand. They all walked into a building and she couldn't help but shiver as the cold air from the air conditioning hit her. Her dad spoke with a nice looking lady who was sitting behind a desk and she told them to go sit down and wait, so they did.

She let go of her dad's hand and waited for her mom to sit down so that she could climb onto her lap. Rather than sit like she normally would have, she faced her mom, wrapped her arms around her neck, and pressed her forehead against her shoulder.

Even though she was pretty nervous, she felt herself calm down a little when her mom started combing her fingers through her hair. She felt May lean down a little and her mom whispered into her ear, "Are you okay?"

She turned her head, pressed her face against May's neck, and nodded.

Her mom kept combing through her hair, "Nervous?"

She nodded again and looked over when she felt her dad start to rub soothing circles over her back. She unwrapped an arm from around her mom and reached it over so that she could hold her dad's hand, "Are you nervous?"

He considered her question, "A little but mostly, I'm extremely happy."

Her mom spoke up, "We're both so happy Skye. Don't be nervous okay?"

She nodded again and couldn't help but smile a little when her mom pressed a kiss to the top of her head. She tried to tell herself to stop feeling anxious.

It helped when her mom distracted her by asking her questions about school and her friends, "Did Jemma have fun at the zoo?"

She leaned back so that she could see her mom's face, "Yeah, she said she saw a lion!"

Her mom looked thoroughly impressed, "What else did she do?"

Skye tried to remember what her friend had told her at school the other day, "She got to hold a bunny. She said it was really soft."

Her mom raised an eyebrow, "They always look soft, don't they?"

She nodded in agreement, "I wanna hold a bunny."

"Why don't we go to the zoo sometime so that you can?"

She grinned, "For real?"

Her mom laughed, "For real."

Squealing, she turned to see if Nattie heard. Her sister had been listening and was smiling at her. Skye smiled back, "We're going to go to the zoo so I can hold a bunny and see the lions!"

Nattie crossed her legs and said, "I heard маленькая звезда. You'll have to hold my hand when we see the lions. They're scary."

Sticking out her chest, she nodded and gave her sister a brave look, "I'll keep you safe."

Her mom and sister both laughed and she felt much better than she did a couple minutes earlier. She kept talking to her family until their names were called. Her mom gave her a reassuring look before placing her on the ground. After making sure her dress was neat, she quickly grabbed onto her parent's hands. She was less nervous than before but it made her feel better when she was holding their hands.

They led her into a room and she looked around. She didn't really know what she was expecting but it wasn't this. In the movies, court rooms were big and had rows of seats that a bunch of people sat in as they watched lawyers argue back and forth with a judge sitting in the very front. This room was not like that.

It was just a small room with a long table in the middle of it. All of the chairs around the table were empty except for two. One held a lady who was wearing glasses and had a keyboard-looking thing in front of her and the other chair held an old man in a black robe. She knew that he was the important guy who was going to make her adoption official.

He had grey hair, wrinkles around his eyes, and he was smiling. Even though he looked kind, she tightened her grip on her parents' hands when he made eye contact with her.

The grown-ups all said hello and introduced each other before sitting around the table. She knew that her parents were going to leave a seat open between them for her to sit on but she didn't want to sit all by herself on the hard, wooden chair. Not caring that she was acting like a total baby right now, she quickly climbed onto May's lap. Her dad glanced at her before scooting over and sitting in the chair that they had left open for her.

Leaning back against her mom's chest, she let out an anxious breath and wrapped Mays' arms around her waist. She felt better cuddled close to her mom.

The judge cleared his throat, "So, we're here to finalize the adoption of Mary Sue Poots-"

She made a face when she heard that name and the judge gave her a little grin before continuing, "Don't worry, your parents have made it clear that we'll also be changing your name to Skye Coulson, alright?"

She nodded gratefully and leaned back further against her mom.

They judge nodded back at her and kept talking, "Right, we're here to finalize this adoption today. We have Melinda Coulson as her mom and Phillip Coulson as her dad for case PT1004044. We also have some family members present here today, Ms. Natasha and Mr. Antoine."

The judge looked over to her siblings, "How're you guys today?"

Trip grinned, "Great."

Nattie agreed, "Very excited."

The judge smiled at them, "That's great to hear. Alright, will mom and dad please raise their hand."

May and Phil both raised their right hands and the judge continued on, "Do you solemnly affirm that the testimony that you may give will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth under pains and penalty of perjury?"

Skye didn't know what that meant but her parents both said, "I do."

"Please state your name for the record."

"Phillip James Coulson."

Her mom gently ran a hand down Skye's arm before answering, "Melinda Qiaolian Coulson."

The judge kept talking and even though she really wanted to listen, Skye found herself zoning out. She played with her mom's fingers for a few minutes until she heard the judge let out a big breath, "Alright, everything is in order. Let me just sign this and everything's official."

She perked up. Nattie was right, it hadn't taken them very long.

She glanced up at her mom. May smiled down at her and she grinned back before looking back to watch the judge sign some papers.

He handed a sheet of paper and a small card to her dad, "Here's Skye's new birth certificate and social security card. Everything's complete. Congratulations mom and dad!"

The judge reached over and shook her parent's hands before reaching for hers. She grabbed onto his hand but didn't let go, "Can I ask you a question?"

The judge glanced over her head at her mom before focusing back on her, "Of course."

She uncertainly looked between her parents before turning back to the judge, "This is my family now? Forever, for real?"

The judge slowly smiled, "Yes, this is your family now, forever. For real."

She _finally_ felt her nervousness completely dissipate and enthusiastically shook his hand before turning around in her mom's arms and hugging her close, "We're a family forever now."

She felt her mom press her face against her hair and tried to pull herself closer. She was so happy right now, she felt like she had been stuffed full of sunshine and was going to explode.

Her mom kissed the top of her head and Skye leaned back and laughed before jumping off of her lap and climbing on top of her dad. She kneeled on his lap and put a hand on each of his cheeks, "You're my dad for real!"

Her dad smiled at her and pulled her in for a hug, "I love you sweetheart."

She kissed his cheek, "I love you too."

She felt too giddy to sit still so she slid off of her dad's lap and ran over to Nattie, "You're my sister! Forever! Even if we get mad at each other, we'll still have to be sisters!"

Her parents laughed along with Nattie. Her sister reached forward to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes before fondly saying, "It looks like we're stuck with each other."

She turned to Trip and he held up his hands, "Yeah we're stuck with each other too."

She laughed and stuck her tongue out at him. He stuck his tongue out before leaning forward to press a kiss to her forehead. She jumped on her toes and made her way back over to her mom.

Wrapping an arm around her mom's leg, she said, "I'm so happy right now."

Her mom stood up from her seat and lifted her up before hugging her close, "Me too."

* * *

What'd you guys think? I'm sorry for the delay! I was going to upload this weekend because we had a long weekend for labor day but my friend didn't want me to stay in the dorm by myself the whole time so he made me spend the weekend with him and his family. Like the complete idiot I am, I forgot my computer charger :/ Anyways, I hope this chapter was alright. I'll upload the next one soon, I promise!

If you have a prompt for me, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page (URL natalierromanova). I'm always accepting prompts :) Thanks so much for reading and being patient. I love you all! xx -Ariel


	33. Skye Officially Gets Adopted Part 2

**Hey guys! Here's the continuation of the last chapter! It's Skye's celebration after her adoption. It's got a lot of familiar people in here :)**

 **Don't forget to go to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! I just wanna say thank you to everyone who takes the time to leave a review. It's always lovely hearing from you guys and I really enjoy chatting with you guys :) Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye raced to the front door as soon as she heard the doorbell ring. It was time for her party to start and her first guest had arrived.

She pulled open the door and looked up at Bobbi and Hunter's faces, "Hi!"

They both smiled at her and Hunter leaned down so that they were face to face, "Hello Ms. Skye Coulson."

She smiled real big when she heard her name. It had been her name for a while now but it felt different today.

Bobbi pulled her hand from behind her back and held out a prettily wrapped box, "We got you a present."

Hopping up and down, she gratefully took the present from Bobbi and held it to her chest, "Can I open it?"

Hunter straightened up and scooted past her so that he was inside, "Of course love, it's not very fun when it's in the box now is it?"

She shook her head and pulled Bobbi inside so that she could close the door. She turned around and ran towards the kitchen after telling Hunter and Bobbi to follow her. Waving her present in front of her, she skidded to a stop in front of her mom, "I got a present!"

Her mom stopped cutting up fruit and looked down at her, "What is it?"

She let out an exasperated breath, "I don't know, I haven't opened it yet."

Bobbi and Hunter both laughed before leaning in to give May a quick hug. Hunter tapped her shoulder, "Are you going to open it or will I have to do it for you?"

She protectively wrapped her arms around the box and stuck her tongue out at him, "I wanna do it."

She sat down on the kitchen floor, set her present down in front of her, admired the pretty wrapping paper, and then tore it open. She squealed when she saw the beautiful doll. It had bright red curly hair, pretty blue eyes, and was wearing a flowery dress and boots. She loved it.

She tugged the doll out of its box, held it to her chest, and looked up at Bobbi and Hunter, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

They both sat down on the floor next to her and she gave them both a hug. Bobbi reached forward and ran her fingers through the dolls hair, "Who does her hair remind you of?"

Skye grinned, "Nattie!"

At that moment, her sister walked into the kitchen, "What?"

She held up her new doll, "This doll has hair like yours!"

Nattie joined them on the kitchen ground and inspected the doll, "It does. I think mine's a little cooler though."

She looked back to Hunter and raised an eyebrow, "What should her name be?"

He put a finger to his lip in mock consideration before letting out a big breath, "I dunno, she's your dolly, you get to name her."

She studied her new doll seriously. Names were very important, she knew that more than anyone. The wrong name could make you feel pretty bad. She tilted her head and grinned when she thought of the perfect name, "This is Sophie."

Everyone smiled at her and they stayed on the ground and played with Sophie until they heard the doorbell ring again. Trip shouted from the living room that he would answer the door and her mom gently prodded her with her foot, "Go say hi to your guests sweetie."

She left Sophie with Hunter and gave him strict instructions to look after her before running towards the door. She smiled widely when she saw the person Trip was talking to, "Grandma!"

She crashed into her Grandma's legs and hugged her tight. She felt Grandma wrap her up in a hug before leaning back and placing a kiss on the top of her head, "Hello my beautiful grandchild. How're you?"

She grinned up at her, "I'm great."

Her grandma patted the top of her head, "Good. Where's your mother?"

She pointed towards the kitchen, "In there."

Her grandma kissed her on the head again and walked to the kitchen. She was about to follow after her when she heard another knock on the door. This was hard work.

She pulled open the door and looked up at Natasha's friends. They all smiled at her and Clint held his arms open, "Princess!"

She rushed forward and hugged him, "Clint!"

Moving over, she gave Steve a tight hug and then gave Bucky one. Clint reached down, lifted her up, and set her down on his shoulders. She squealed and wrapped her arms around his neck so that she didn't fall. He made a choking sound and she loosened her hold on him a little.

Bucky looked up at her, "How was today?"

The group started walking towards the kitchen and she unwrapped one arm from around Clint's neck and gripped his hair tightly instead, "It was _awesome_. Did you know that Nattie and I still have to be sisters even if we get in a fight and are mad at each other? We _have_ to, it's the _law_."

Clint chuckled and stopped when they reached the kitchen. Nattie, Bobbi, and Hunter were still sitting on the floor and Clint nudged Nat with his foot, "I heard that Skye's stuck with you for the rest of her life."

She tapped the top of his head, "Hey, I _want_ to be stuck with Nattie for the rest of my life."

Her sister stood up and gave Clint a dirty look before smiling at her, "Thank you Skye."

She swung her legs back and forth until Clint set her on the ground and she grabbed Sophie back from Hunter. Proudly shoving the doll into Bucky's chest, she shook it so that he knew that he was supposed to look at it, "Look at my new doll. Hunter and Bobbi got her for me and her name is Sophie. She has hair like Nattie's!"

Bucky made a show of inspecting Sophie before nodding his approval, "I think Mara and Alice are going to be very good friends with her."

She agreed, "I think so too."

* * *

Giggling, she watched as her mom pushed her dad away from the grill. Her dad looked offended for a second before leaning in, kissing her mom's cheek, and walking back over to Pepper and Tony.

Her mom readjusted her on her hip and turned sideways so that the heat from the grill was less intense on her face. Her mom handed her the metal spatula and pointed to a hamburger, "You wanna flip it?"

Carefully reaching out, she scooped the burger up and slowly flipped it over. She smiled proudly and her mom leaned in to kiss her cheek before pointing to the next burger.

While focusing on her burgers, she said, "Why can't daddy come near the grill?"

Her mom grinned, "Because he's terrible at it. He burns everything, including himself."

She didn't know how he was terrible at grilling things, when he made dinner for them inside it was always awesome. She finished flipping the burgers and she turned to her dad and smirked at him while her mom rotated to hot dogs. She called out to him, "Hey daddy! I'm a better griller than you!"

He stuck his tongue out at her and she copied him before she heard her friends shouting at her to go play with them. She wiggled around until her mom set her down and ran over to where her friends were playing on her playground. Jemma and Fitz were swinging on the swings while Lincoln, Ward, and Thomas were hanging off the monkey bars. She climbed up the slide and sat down over by the monkey bars so that she could watch them.

She looked around and couldn't help but feel perfectly content with all the people surrounding her. Nattie and her friends were trying to steal some food from the table it was sitting on but her grandma kept giving them 'the look' and they would walk away in defeat only to try again a few minutes later. Trip and his friend's were kicking a soccer ball around and she told herself that she was going to ask them if she could play with them later. Thor and Jane were talking Jemma's mom and she watched as Lincoln's mom joined them. Pepper laughed at something her dad said while Tony had an unimpressed look on his face. Everything was perfect, the only downside was that Wanda and Pietro weren't here but she had set up a time to video chat with them tomorrow.

She was happy.

Ward sat down next to her and she scooted over so that there was more room. She looked over at him and frowned in concern when she saw his face, "What's wrong?"

Ward sighed and stayed quiet for so long that she thought that he wasn't going to answer, "I'm happy for you."

She scrunched up her nose, "It doesn't look like it."

He turned to her and smiled but it looked forced and fake. She tilted her head as realization dawned on her, "It's okay Ward. I think Jane and Thor are going to adopt you."

His eyes widened in surprise, "Really?"

She nodded confidently. She knew how much Thomas and Ward loved Thor and Jane. She had seen how they acted around each other and she knew that Thor and Jane would be complete dummies if they didn't want Ward and Thomas as their kids.

Ward gave her an uncertain look, "I want them to adopt me and my brother but-"

He paused and she nudged him with her shoulder, "But what?"

Staring after his brother, Ward kept his eyes averted from her when he answered, "Then they'd be our real family and my last real family wasn't so good. I don't want them to be like my old parents."

She thought about that for a couple seconds before shaking her head, "That won't happen."

Grant looked away from Thomas and towards her, "How do you know?"

She smiled at him, "Because, Thor and Jane already feel like your real family, don't they? I know Thomas calls them his mom and dad."

Ward nodded, "They feel like real family. They're way better than my actual parents were."

She stretched her legs out and leaned back on her hands, "The only thing that changes when they adopt you is your last name. Jane and Thor are good people, they won't be like your old parents."

Ward stared at her and then gave her a real smile, "Yeah, I guess I already knew that. I just feel-"

He paused again and she spoke up, "Afraid to hope?"

He nodded and she gave him an understanding look, "I know, but it's worth it."

Ward let out a big breath and nodded again, "I trust ya."

She smiled real big, "Good, now we both have families who are nice and love us."

He grinned and hopped down onto the ground, "We're pretty lucky. Let's go steal the soccer ball from your brother."

She laughed and jumped to the ground before beckoning her friends to follow her towards Trip.

* * *

Setting her empty plate of food aside, she leaned back into her mom's chest. She was stuffed full of potato salad, watermelon, chips, and half a hamburger. Knowing that they still had cake, she put a hand on her tummy and told it to stop feeling so full so that she could have a slice.

Her mom wrapped her arms around Skye's waist, leaned forward, and spoke quietly, "Are you having fun?"

She nodded immediately, "Yeah."

She tilted her head back so that she could see her mom's face and said, "I'm really happy."

It felt too simplistic, she wasn't _just_ happy. She felt like she was full of sunshine and rainbows and sparkles. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt this amazing, like everything was _right_ , but she loved it. She wasn't sure how to describe this feeling to her mom so she settled on 'happy'.

Her mom smiled real big and kissed her forehead, "I'm happy too."

She turned back around and cuddled close to her mom, "Thanks for changing my name to Skye. I hated being Mary Sue."

Her mom laughed softly, "You were always Skye to us baby."

It felt impossible but after hearing that, she felt even happier. She never thought she would find a family who completely understood her like this one did.

She let out a content sigh, "I love you mommy."

"I love you too Skye."

She tilted her head back and her mom looked like she was upside down, "How much?"

Her mom smiled, "I love you to the moon and back-"

Skye finished for her like she always did, "More than all the stars in the sky."

She gave her mom a smile and looked back at her empty plate, "I don't think I'll be able to eat cake."

Her mom's voice sounded unconvinced when she said, "I'm sure you'll be able to find a way baby."

* * *

She did find a way. Even though she ended up feeling insanely full, she had crammed chocolate cake into her mouth and hadn't regretted it. She had been so full that she had sat with her parents while everyone else had run around and played tag. Tony had tripped twice and it had been hilarious to watch.

The party was now over and all of her guests had gone home. She had started off with helping her parents clean up but had slowly stopped. She was tired. Her mom said that it was from all the sugary treats and from running around but even though today had been the best day of her whole entire life, it had been stuffed full of fun things and it had lasted forever.

She hadn't realized she had drifted off on the couch until she felt hands gently lift her up and her eyes snapped open. She wrapped her arms around her dad's neck, rested her head on his shoulder, and looked back to see her mom following them upstairs.

She poked her dad's neck, "I don't want to go to sleep."

He chuckled, "You were already sleeping sweetheart."

She halfheartedly shook her head, "No I wasn't, I'm not even tired."

"Well it's bedtime anyways."

She let out an unhappy sound, "I don't want today to be over."

They walked into her room and her dad gently deposited her on her bed. Her mom grabbed one of Nattie's worn out t-shirts, she had stolen some from her sister because she liked to use them as pajamas, and brought it over to her.

She still felt tired but she refused to fall asleep. Today was the best day ever and she didn't want it to end. Her mom held out the shirt but she didn't take it, instead she crossed her arms and shook her head, "I don't wanna go to sleep."

Her eyelids felt heavy and she fought to keep them open. They shut for a second but she forced them open when her mom said, "It's bedtime, you have to go to sleep baby. You'll be very tired tomorrow if you don't."

She scrunched up her nose but relented. She knew how to choose her battles.

Her mom helped her get changed into her pajamas while her dad plugged in her nightlight. Once she was dressed, they tucked her into bed and she snuggled into her pillows. Her dad handed her Alice and Sophie and she made sure her dolls were comfy before reaching out for hugs.

Her dad leaned forward and gave her a tight hug before pressing a kiss to her forehead, "G'night Skye, I love you."

She smiled sleepily, "I love you too."

Her mom hugged her next and she purposefully placed a sloppy kiss on Skye's cheek. Skye made a sound of protest, grinned, and pushed her away. She motioned her mom forward with her finger and when her mom got close enough, she licked the side of her cheek in retaliation.

Her mom made a silly face, "Alright alright, we're even. G'night my little bedbug. I love you."

She wiggled around until she was comfy in her sheets and said, "Goodnight, I love you too."

Her parents walked to the door and glanced back at her one more time before gently shutting the door. She grinned, rolled onto her side, and pulled Alice close to her chest. She was kind of sad that today was over but she knew that with a family like hers, she was bound to have many more days that were just as amazing as today was.

* * *

What'd you guys think? Some people wanted to see some more Skye/Mel interaction so I made sure to put a lot in there. I hope it didn't seem like I was neglecting Phil!

College has been kicking my ass so far. I'm taking a lot of credit hours this semester and it suuuucks! Have any of you guys started school yet or are you still free?

Thank you so much for reading! You're all beautiful daisies and I love ya so much :) xx -Ariel


	34. Natasha & Clint Babysit

**Hey guys! This was inspired by Uma FicWriter and PanicMoon15's prompts: "Nat has to babysit Skye, maybe Clint can help too."**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next. If you have a prompt for me, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page (URL natalierromanova) and I'll gladly add it to the poll! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"C'mon mom, you don't need to hire a babysitter. I can watch the little munchkin."

Skye was following Nattie who was following their mom around the house. Their mom had to go to a conference out of town for the weekend and that had been okay up until the point where their dad had gotten stuck with the night shift at the hospital. Her mom was leaving tomorrow and May was desperately trying to find a babysitter who would be willing to stay the night to watch her. Apparently she wasn't having much luck.

Her mom walked into her room and started organizing the clothes in the suitcase that was sitting on her bed, "I would feel better if an adult was here Tash."

Nattie flung herself onto the bed, "I'm basically an adult mom."

Skye climbed onto the bed and grabbed a shirt from her mom's suitcase. She tried to fold it, failed miserably, and handed it to her mom so that she could do a better job.

May gave Nattie a look, "You're a teenager."

Trying to be helpful, Skye spoke up, "I don't need a babysitter. I'm a big girl."

Both Nattie and her mom gave her exasperated looks and her mom reached over to brush her bangs out of her eyes, "I know you're a big girl but someone has to watch you while we aren't here."

She crossed her arms and made herself comfortable on the bed. She knew her argument was going to fail, it failed every time, but you couldn't blame her for trying.

Nattie said, "Clint can come over and help. Skye loves him."

She grinned, "Yeah, I do love him."

Their mom sighed, "Great, two slightly older kids watching a younger kid. What could go wrong?"

Nattie looked slightly offended, "Come on mom, I can do this. Don't you trust me?"

May ran her fingers through Natasha's hair and her face softened, "Of course I trust you sweetie, it's just that this is a very big responsibility."

Her sister nodded seriously, "I know, I can handle it."

Her mom looked around the room and stayed silent for a few moments before letting out a giant breath, "Alright."

Natasha shot her a triumphant grin and hugged their mom tightly, "I won't let you down."

* * *

Natasha opened up the door to reveal Clint and Skye ran towards him. She gave him a big hug and smiled up at him, "Hi!"

He ruffled her hair, "Hey Princess, you ready to have some fun?"

Her mom cleared her throat and Clint glanced up at her before correcting himself, "I mean, ready to have a safe, responsible, and wholesome night?"

Skye made a face and wandered back over to May. She wrapped her arms around one of her mom's legs and leaned against her. She felt her mom put a hand on top of her head before she said, "Hey Clint, how're you?"

Clint set his backpack on the grown and smiled at them while Nat shut the door, "I'm great."

"That's great. Are you prepared to look after my youngest child and be responsible for her health and safety while I'm away?"

Skye watched as Clint's eyes widened and he gulped, "Um…"

Natasha put a hand on his shoulder and gave their mom an incredulous look, "She's just kidding Clint, don't worry."

It didn't sound like her mom was kidding but she didn't say that because Clint already looked pretty nervous. Luckily Clint was saved when her dad came barreling down the staircase. He was rushing around like he always did when he was running late and when he stopped in front of them, he was slightly out of breath, "I've got to head out if I want to make it on time, you should too Mel."

Her mom nodded at him and her dad finally noticed that Clint was there, "Hey, thanks for helping Nat tonight."

Clint still looked nervous but he smiled, "It's no problem, I love hanging out with Skye."

She liked hanging out with Clint too. He and Nattie were going to be _way_ more fun than any other babysitter would have been.

Her dad clapped his hands together, "Okay, don't forget to make dinner. We left emergency money on the table and Skye's bedtime's at eight. Here's a list of numbers that you might need, including the Simmons'."

Her dad handed Nattie a piece of paper and her sister looked it over before glancing up at their dad and raising an eyebrow, "Dad, I know what the number for 911 is."

Phil held his hands up defensively, "Hey, you never know how you'll react in an emergency situation."

Her mom spoke up, "Not that there should be any emergencies."

"Right, of course not. This is just precautionary."

She tightened her grip on her mom's leg and looked up at her, "Do you have to go?"

May gave her an apologetic look and hauled her into her arms so that she could hug her close, "Yes, I'm sorry baby. I'll be back Sunday afternoon."

She turned her head to look over at her dad, "Do _you_ have to go?"

He looked guilty, "If there was any way that I could've gotten out of this, I would've done it sweetheart. I'm stuck."

She frowned and hugged her mom tighter. She didn't like it when they left her, even if they were leaving her with her sister and friend.

Her mom rubbed circles on her back, "I'll be back Sunday and daddy will be here when you wake up, it'll be alright."

Skye knew that it would be alright but that didn't mean she had to like it. It was never fun when her parents were gone, she always felt like her chest was hollow while they were away, especially right before she went to sleep, but at least Natasha was going to be here with her. She tried to focus on that and hoped that she wouldn't feel as sad as she usually did when her parents were gone.

She heard her dad say goodbye to Natasha and he moved over and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "I'll see you in the morning Skye. We can make chocolate chip pancakes."

She loved chocolate chip pancakes and he knew that so she gave him a small smile, "Okay, I'll see you in the morning. Love you."

He pressed another kiss to her forehead, "I love you too sweetheart."

Suddenly her mom squeezed her tight in another hug and whispered in her ear, "Bye baby, I love you to the moon and back-"

Skye finished for her, "More than all the stars in the sky."

Smiling at her, her mom set her down on the ground and grabbed her suitcase from where it was resting by the door. As she passed Natasha, she paused and pressed a kiss to Nattie's forehead, "Bye sweetie, I love you. Please, _please_ take care of your sister. And keep me regularly updated."

Natasha hugged May, "She'll be fine mom."

Her mom let out a breath, "I know but as a mother it's my job to worry."

Her dad opened the door and held it open so that her mom could walk through it. Skye followed them, leaned against the doorway, and watched her parents say goodbye to each other before walking to their separate cars. She waved at them, "Bye mommy! Bye daddy!"

They both waved back at her and May blew her a kiss and before she knew it, they were driving down the street. The further away they got, the emptier she felt. She waved until she couldn't see them anymore and Nattie ushered her back inside.

Natasha shut the door and walked over to stand in front of her and next to Clint. The two older kids both smiled at her and she promptly burst into tears.

Her vision was blurry but she could see the worried look that Nattie and Clint shared. Her sister stepped forward and kneeled in front of her, "What's wrong маленькая звезда?"

Trying to catch her breath, she wiped her face with her hand and hiccupped, "I m-miss mo-ommy and d-daddy."

Her sister made a sympathetic sound and hugged her, "I know but you're going to have a lot of fun with Clint and I."

She sniffled and pressed her face against Nattie's shoulder, "I s-still miss them though."

Natasha patted her back and comforted her while she cried. After a few minutes, she caught her breath and her tears slowed down. Her face felt hot, her nose was runny, and her chest still felt empty but she felt a little better. She leaned back and her sister gave her a small smile, "Better?"

She nodded sheepishly and Nattie brushed her thumbs over her cheeks and collected her tears, "Why don't you take a shower, it'll help you feel better, and afterwards we'll make you some dinner and play some games?"

Looking up at Clint, he nodded encouragingly so she agreed. Nattie stood up and offered her hand and Skye took it.

* * *

Nattie had played fun music while she had taken the shower and Skye felt much better when she stepped into the warm, fluffy towel that her sister was holding open for her. She dried off and Nattie helped her into her favorite pajamas, it was a onesie that looked like Captain America's uniform, and combed her hair. Once she was all set, her sister kneeled in front of her and gave her a serious look, "Are you alright?"

Skye still felt sad that her parents weren't here with her but she didn't feel sad enough that she wanted to cry, "I'm alright."

Nattie nodded, "Good. You can tell me if you feel sad, you know that right?"

She twirled her damp hair around her finger and nodded, "I know."

Her sister leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, "I get sad when mom and dad are away too."

Skye looked up at her, "Really?"

Nattie nodded and Skye let out a sigh of relief. It was good to know that she wasn't the only one who felt like this, "I like it when they're here with us."

Standing up, Nattie intertwined their pinkies and led her out of the bathroom, "I know маленькая звезда but sometimes they can't be here."

"I know but I wish they could be."

Nattie looked down at her, "I'm sorry, but I promise that I'll try to make tonight really, really fun."

Giving her sister a small smile, she said, "I know, you're always fun."

They walked into the kitchen and paused at what they saw. Clint was leaning over a pot and was humming while stirring the contents inside. There was a bunch of food sitting on the counter and it all looked really good.

Her sister cleared her throat and Clint jumped a little before turning to them, "Hey guys! I made dinner."

Nattie looked around the kitchen, "And a mess."

Clint waved her off, "I'll clean it up. You hungry Skye?"

She nodded eagerly and made her way over to him, "What'd you make?"

She tried jumping up and down to see what was in the pot but she was too short. Clint helpfully lifted her up and set her on his hip. She wrapped an arm around his neck and made a happy sound when she leaned over and saw that he was making macaroni and cheese.

Clint pointed at the pot, "We got macaroni and cheese over here and some pb&j's, pretzels, and chicken nuggets over there."

She looked over to the kitchen counter where the rest of the food was sitting and her eyes widened. There was a whole plate full of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and a big bowl full of pretzels. The plate that held the dinosaur chicken nuggets was large and Skye didn't know how they would be able to eat all this food. Either way, she couldn't help but ask her next question, "Can I have an apple too?"

Clint nodded seriously, "Of course, you might as well eat _something_ that has nutritional value. That way your mom won't kill me when she gets back."

Natasha shook her head and motioned to the food, "Clint, we can't eat all this food. There's just too much."

Clint gave her a doubtful look, "Oh really?"

He pulled the pot off of the stove and moved Skye so that she was sitting on top of his shoulders, "Because I think that Captain America can do anything, right Skye?"

She puffed out her chest so that Nattie could clearly see Captain America's insignia on her chest and grinned, "Yeah, we can do _anything_."

Clint waved Natasha over to them, "You finish this and I'll go cut up an apple."

She giggled as Clint purposefully took bouncy steps to the fruit bowl. She kept a tight grip on his hair so that she didn't fall off of his shoulders and watched him cut up an apple for her. Keeping her voice low so that her sister didn't hear, she whispered, "I don't think we'll be able to eat all that."

"I _might_ have been a little excessive but now I _have_ to eat it all so that Natasha isn't right. Will you help me?"

She nodded and then remembered that he couldn't see her, "I'll help you."

He let go of the apple for a moment and raised up a fist to that she could fist bump him, "Let's do this."

* * *

Skye had given up on eating long ago. Her tummy was full of half an apple, three dinosaur chicken nuggets, two handfuls of pretzels, and half a pb&j. She hadn't been able to eat any of the macaroni and cheese.

Nattie had also given up but she had eaten more than Skye had. Even then, there was still two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches left, five chicken nuggets, and a quarter of the macaroni and cheese. Clint was slowly chewing on a chicken nugget and Skye was honestly surprised that he was still eating.

Nattie rested her head on her hand and raised an eyebrow at Clint, "Are you seriously going to eat all of this? I know you're just doing it to be right."

Clint scoffed and winced as he swallowed his chicken nugget, "No I'm not, I'm just really hungry."

Skye shared a look with Natasha and spoke up, "It doesn't look like you're hungry, it looks like you're full."

Clint picked up a sandwich and stared at it, "I am not Skye, this is just how I look when-"

Nattie interrupted him, "When you're about to throw up. Clinton I swear to god if you throw up in here I will _not_ be cleaning it up."

Clint put the sandwich down in defeat, "Fine, you win."

Her sister smiled triumphantly and looked around the kitchen, "I'll clean up, you just sit there and try not to be sick."

Clint groaned, laid his head down on the table, and gave her a thumbs up. Her sister stood up and Skye followed her. They both brought their plates into the kitchen and rinsed them off before placing them in the dishwasher. They dutifully cleaned up and by the time they were done, Clint still hadn't moved from where they had left him.

She walked over to him and poked his arm carefully before looking over to her sister, "Is he alive?"

Clint suddenly sat up and grabbed her and she couldn't stop the scream that escaped her, "You can't get rid of me that easily."

She could feel her heart crashing into her ribcage and pushed a finger into his chest, "That was _not_ very nice."

He gave her a guilty look, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you Princess."

She crossed her arms, "You did."

"How can I make it up to you?"

An idea crossed her mind and she jumped away from Clint, ran over to her sister, and whispered something in her ear. Nattie smiled mischievously and nodded, "I think that's a great idea."

Clint gave them an anxious look, "What're you guys up to?"

Nattie pushed her towards him, "Why don't you tell him your good idea Skye?"

She grinned, "We want to give you a makeover!"

Clint's reaction was funny. His eyes got wide and he held his hands protectively in front of him, "Uh, I don't think-"

Skye cut him off and stood in front of him, "Please?"

Clint stayed silent and Nattie spoke up from behind her, "Give him the puppy eyes Skye."

She climbed on top of Clint's lap, put a hand on either side of his cheek, pouted her lower lip, and widened her yes, "Pwease?"

She knew that she had won when he let out a giant sigh. What a sucker.

* * *

Skye smudged some blue eye shadow from her Barbie Beauty Makeover set onto her finger and rubbed it over Clint's eyelid. When she was done, she stepped back and admired her work.

Clint was sitting dejectedly at her desk. He looked really pretty with his blue eye shadow, bright pink cheeks, and glossy lips. She had clipped yellow and purple butterfly clips into his short hair and that had just completed the whole look.

She grinned proudly and held up a hand mirror for him to see her work. He took to mirror from her and gasped when he saw his reflection.

His eyes widened and he looked up at Natasha, who looked like she was trying not to laugh. Skye smiled up at him, "Do you like it?"

He glanced down at her, "Uh, yeah. Yeah, I love it."

Her smile widened, "I think you look real pretty."

Natasha laughed and Clint threw her a dirty look before turning back to Skye, "Thank you Skye. You're great at this stuff."

She started putting her stuff away, "Thanks, I practice on Trip all the time."

Clint stood up and rubbed the back of his neck, "Now what do you want to do?"

Natasha glanced at her phone, "We have enough time to watch an episode of Spongebob before you have to go to bed Skye. How does that sound?"

Skye forgot about putting her beauty set away and hopped up and down, "Yay!"

They all made their way downstairs and Skye watched Clint grab a napkin from the table. He was about to bring it to his face when Skye stopped him, "What are you doing?"

He shrugged and acted nonchalant, "I was just gonna-"

She grabbed the napkin from his hand, "No! You have to leave it on!"

He looked over to Natasha but her sister just gave him a stern look, "You heard the girl."

Clint relented and Skye led them all into the living room to watch Spongebob.

She hadn't realized she had fallen asleep until she felt herself be gently deposited onto her comfy bed. She was only half awake but she heard Clint ask what he was supposed to do.

Natasha instructed him to plug in her nightlight and Skye felt her sister place Alice on the bed next to her. She rolled over and grabbed the doll before snuggling into her pillows. Her blanket was somehow tucked around her and she felt warm lips press a kiss to her forehead, "Goodnight маленькая звезда, I love you."

Clint sounded further away than Nattie when he said, "G'night Princess."

She tried to respond but all she could manage was an incoherent mumble and a small smile before falling back asleep.

* * *

The first thing she did when she woke up was sprint downstairs to see if her dad was back. She smiled widely when she saw him in the kitchen.

He must have heard her running towards him because he turned around and caught her when she launched herself at him, "Daddy! You're back!"

Setting her on his hip, he leaned in to press a kiss to the top of her head before turning back to the pancakes he was making, "I told you I'd be here. How was last night?"

Skye wrapped an arm around her dad's neck and rested her head against his shoulder, "It was _awesome._ Nattie's the best babysitter ever, even though I'm not a baby."

Her dad laughed lightly before setting his spatula down and dangling her in front of him. He slowly made it seem like he was dropping her and she squealed and tried to hold onto him. He grunted, "I know you aren't a baby. You're so big that I can't even carry you anymore."

She felt like she was slipping and yelped, "Okay, I'm not _that_ big yet!"

Her dad chuckled and set her onto his hip again, "Stay little for as long as you can, that's an order."

She nodded seriously and automatically grabbed the bag of chocolate chips that her dad handed to her and started sprinkling some over the pancakes that were being made. Her dad flipped the pancakes and looked over to her, "Maybe Nat can watch you more often instead of other babysitters. Would you like that?"

She grinned, "Yes!"

He nodded, "Alright. Do you think your mom's awake yet?"

It was still pretty early so she shook her head. Her dad gave her a mischievous smile, "Why don't you call her and see for yourself? I'm sure she'd love to talk to you."

He took his phone out of his pocket and hit a few buttons before handing it to her. She pressed it to her ear and listened to it ring for a few seconds before her mom answered. Her mom sounded really groggy and her voice was thick when she said, "'ello?"

She smiled and said loudly, "Mommy! Are you awake?"

"Mhm. Can I talk to your dad real fast?"

She handed the phone over to her dad and he looked reluctant to take it but he finally did. She watched him listen to whatever her mom was saying before he said, "No Mel it wasn't me, she called you on her own!"

Skye grinned. Even though she had a lot of fun with Nattie and Clint last night, it was good to be back with her dad.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I know that I didn't give a legitimate excuse for why Trip wasn't there but just pretend he was at a friend's house or something idk :) I love writing Nat and Skye scenes!

I'm doing nothing all weekend so if any of you guys are also doing nothing, you should totally come talk to me on tumblr. I'm just a lonely girl who's friends all went home for the weekend and I'm stuck on campus. Ease my suffering please, I beg! xx -Ariel


	35. Skye Chats With The Twins

**Hey guys! This was inspired by skyedaisyjohnson181001's prompt: "Could you add a chapter where she speaks with the twins? I miss them already." I missed them too dude, I love writing them :) It's short but cute!**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! If you have a prompt for me, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page. I'm always accepting them :)**

 **Since I'm getting settled into college, I'm going to try to start working on the sequel to You Can Trust Me. If anyone wants to talk to me about it or help me figure out the plot, I would wholeheartedly welcome it! I work better when I have someone to talk my ideas through with :) Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye smiled widely when her brother and sister's faces appeared on the screen in front of her. They all talked regularly but it never felt like it was enough. She missed Wanda and Pietro and it was always better when they were home with her but until the semester was over, they had to settle for phone calls and video chats.

Waving at them, she said, "Hi! I miss you."

Her siblings smiled at her and Wanda waved back, "We miss you too little monkey."

Grabbing onto her moon necklace that they had given her, she hopefully said, "Are you coming home soon?"

Pietro made a sad face, "We'll be home in a little while Skye, we still have to take our exams."

Skye didn't know what that meant but she hated exams for making her siblings stay away from her, "I wish you were here with me."

Wanda leaned her head on her hand and gave her a small smile, "We wish we were with you too."

"It makes me sad when you guys are away."

Her siblings looked at each other before turning back to her. Pietro pointed at her through the screen, "Let's not be sad right now, let's be happy. What have you been up to? Have you don't anything fun lately?"

Skye shook off her sadness and tried to think about what she had done since she had last talked to them. Bringing a finger to her lip, she tapped it thoughtfully and heard Wanda chuckle. She let out an excited sound when she thought of something to tell them, "I know what I want to be for Halloween!"

Wanda and Pietro both leaned forward and had looks of complete interest on their faces. Wanda grinned, "What do you want to be?"

She giggled, "Guess."

They both looked thoughtful for a few seconds before Pietro snapped his fingers together and said, "I know what you want to be, you're going to dress up as your favorite brother aren't you? I could send you some of my clothes so that it's authentic."

She laughed and shook her head, "No!"

Her brother looked offended, "Why not?"

She grinned and shrugged her shoulders, "Because that's not a fun costume!"

Wanda laughed and Pietro sighed dramatically, "Fine, give us a hint."

Thinking about it, Skye said, "She's a princess."

Wanda immediately said, "Rapunzel?"

Skye nodded excitedly and Wanda said, "It'll be easy to find a costume for Rapunzel Skye, you already have all of her dresses."

Pietro nodded, "You'll be a beautiful princess."

The more Skye thought about what Wanda said, the more she felt like changing who she wanted to be for Halloween. Her sister was right, she _did_ have all of Rapunzel's dresses, she even had her tiara! She dressed up as Rapunzel all the time, maybe she should dress up as something else for the holiday.

Pietro gave her a look, "What're you thinking about? You've got your thinking face on."

She didn't know what her thinking face looked like but she scrunched her nose up at him, "Maybe I'll be something else for Halloween."

Wanda grabbed a cup from the desk in front of her and took a sip from it while Pietro said, "What do you wanna be?"

She shrugged. She hadn't even considered being anything other than Rapunzel for Halloween so now she wasn't sure what she wanted to be.

Giving her siblings a pleading look, she whined, "Help me."

Wanda grinned, "Why don't you be a superhero?"

Skye perked up, "Captain America?"

Pietro shook his head, "Nah, you dress up as him all the time. Let's think of someone else."

She didn't know that many superheros, Captain America was her favorite, "I don't know anyone else."

Pietro suddenly smiled widely, "I know! You can be the Hulk. We can paint you green and you can smash a bunch of things."

She crinkled her forehead, "I don't wanna be green."

Wanda spoke up, "What about Iron Man?"

She didn't know who that was, "Who?"

Wanda's eyes brightened and she leaned forward so that her face took up the whole screen, "Oh Skye, he's perfect for you! He's a very smart superhero who's awesome at engineering and computers. You're still into computer's right?"

She nodded quickly, she hadn't been able to shake her passion for technology since she discovered it, and listened as Wanda continued talking, "Anyways, he built his own superhero suit!"

Wiggling around in her seat from excitement, she said, "Can he fly?"

Pietro pulled Wanda back so that she could see his face on the screen again and said, "Of course he can fly shorty."

Well, that settled that, "I wanna be Iron Man for Halloween!"

Her siblings both smiled at her and she shouted so that her dad could hear her from the kitchen, "Daddy!"

She waited a few seconds until she saw her dad's head poke into the living room and he said, "Yeah?"

She smiled excitedly, "I'm gonna be Iron Man for Halloween!"

Her dad looked confused for a second, "I thought you were going to be Rapunzel?"

Shaking her head, she let out an exasperated breath, "No, that was before."

Pietro chuckled and she heard him say, "Yeah dad, keep up."

Her dad held his hands in front of him, "Alright, we'll find you an Iron Man costume this weekend sweetheart."

"Thanks daddy."

He smiled at her and said, "No problem sweetie, you'll be a great superhero," before returning to the kitchen.

Turning back to her siblings, she leaned back against the couch, "Thanks for helping me."

Pietro waved her off, "That's what we're here for kiddo."

Wanda nodded in agreement and her voice turned serious when she said, "You know that we'll help you with anything, even when we're far away from each other, right?"

Even though it made her sad that her brother and sister were so far away from her, she knew that if she ever needed them, they would be here for her, "I know. You guys are the best brother and sister in the world."

Wanda smiled at her and Pietro smirked, "Are we your favorite?"

She laughed, "You're _all_ my favorite!"

Her brother laughed, "C'mon, I know you love us the most."

She shook her head and giggled, "No, I love you all the same!"

"Alright, I guess that's a good answer." Pietro glanced at something that she couldn't see and gave her an apologetic look, "We're going to have to head out Skye."

It seemed like they had only been talking for a few seconds, it couldn't be over already! She stood up and moved closer to the laptop, "No, don't leave please! Can't we talk a little longer?"

Her siblings both gave her pained looks and Wanda sadly shook her head, "I'm sorry little monkey, we have to go to our classes."

Skye made an unhappy sound and Pietro said, "We'll call you this weekend and you can tell us all about your Iron Man costume okay?"

She reluctantly nodded, "Okay. Bye, I love you."

Wanda blew a kiss at her, "I love you too."

She waved at her sister and Pietro said, "Talk to you later Skye, I love you."

"I love you too."

Her brother got a mischievous look in his eye and quickly said, "I _knew_ we were your favorite! Love ya Skye."

She laughed and was about to respond but her brother ended their call before she could. She shook her head and sat back down on the couch. Her family always knew how to make her feel better when she was feeling sad.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I miss writing the twins :( They're so much fun and I really really loved them in Age of Ultron. I think they were my favorite part of the movie.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my little one-shots. You guys are amazing and I love you :) xx -Ariel


	36. Skye Has Separation Anxiety

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by thesillybus (go check out her tumblr it's amazing) and it's about Skye having to deal with her separation anxiety. I used to have really, really bad separation anxiety from my parents so this was actually inspired by some of my experiences with that.**

 **IMPORTANT:** **this chapter occurs shortly after You Can Trust Me ended, maybe a few weeks, so Skye's still very traumatized and clingy. Poor lil baby.**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! If you have a prompt for me, please send it in either on here or on my tumblr page and I'll add it to the poll! Thanks so much for reading you guys and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"I thought that Skye's separation anxiety might have eased up a little bit by now." Melinda gave Jiaying a worried look and felt Phil wrap an arm around her waist as they watched Skye play on the floor with her dolls.

Jiaying nodded, "Me too. Separation anxiety is common in most young children but considering what Skye's been through, I think she might have Separation Anxiety Disorder."

She continued to watch Skye and felt her heart ache a little. She just wanted Skye to be able to play and have fun like any other child. The world had dealt her a really, really crappy hand and she didn't want that to impact Skye's future.

She leaned against Phil's side and he rubbed small circles on her hip with his thumb while he asked, "How can we help her?"

Jay gave them a sad look, "The only way to deal with this disorder is to face it head on. Skye's not going to like it."

Of _course_ Skye wasn't going to like it. Everything they had to do to help Skye work through her trauma took her out of her comfort zone so it didn't surprise Mel that this would be no different.

She sighed, "What should we do?"

Jay turned to them, "We should practice separation. Leave Skye for short periods of time so that she can get used to being away from you. She's going to hate it and it's going to be hard on you guys but it can really help."

Mel glanced at her husband and he looked just as happy about the plan as she felt. She didn't want to make Skye uncomfortable or cause her any more anxiety but this was going to help her in the long run so they had to do it.

Jiaying gave them a sympathetic look, "I know how you guys feel but it's _very_ important that you stay strong and firm with her. She's going to resist and you need to make sure that she knows that she will be fine. You can't give in."

Mel nodded, "Okay."

Jay gave her a small smile, "Good, now do you have someone that can watch her while you're away? Someone she's comfortable around would be best."

She glanced at Phil and thought about her options. The thing is, they hadn't left Skye with anyone since the little girl had come to live with them. Skye didn't seem to trust any other adult except for Mrs. Hill and… "She's comfortable around you."

Jiaying looked surprised for a moment and Melinda pushed forward, "It's just that she hasn't been around that many adults since we've started caring for her and besides you, the only other person I can think of is her teacher."

Jay quickly shook her head, "No, that's alright. I might actually be the best option because I can help her talk through what she's feeling when you guys are away."

Mel let out a sigh of relief and gave Jay a smile, "Thank you."

Jiaying shook her off, "We're all here to help Skye. When's a good time for you?"

Phil spoke up, "How about tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow's fine. You guys will only have to be gone for an hour, that's long enough for the first time. Please talk to Skye and let her know what's happening. I don't want to throw this at her and surprise her tomorrow. She needs to know what's going on and why we're doing this."

She nodded, "Of course, we'll talk to her tonight. Thank you Jay."

* * *

Skye had not taken the news very well.

There had been tears and accusations and a lot of foot stomping. There had even been a small temper tantrum the night before but today Skye seemed to have moved on from her full-on resistance and was now just clinging to either her or Phil.

Wherever they went, Skye was there. Grabbing onto their legs, holding their hand, sitting on their laps, Skye was there every second of the day. It hurt Mel to see her like this, the fact that Skye was so afraid to let them out of her sight that she wouldn't even leave them to go play with her dolls was terrible.

Finally, after trying to clean the kitchen with a tiny, three foot tall shadow clinging to her side, Mel had given up. She crouched down and ran her fingers through Skye's hair, "Sweetie, Jay won't be here for another hour. Why don't you go play outside or something?"

Skye vigorously shook her head, "I don't want to."

Mel tried to give her a reassuring look, "But it's so nice out and you've been cooped up all day. It'll be fun!"

Skye didn't seem impressed or deterred, "No thank you."

Sighing, Mel sat down on the ground and pulled Skye into her lap, "I'm not going to disappear baby. If you go play, I'll be here when you come back."

She felt Skye lean heavily against her chest and let the little girl take her hands and wrap them around her waist, "I just want to stay with you."

She pressed a kiss to the top of Skye's head and stayed quiet for a little while. She rocked back and forth and hugged Skye close, "Are you worried about later?"

Skye nodded and tilted her head up so that Mel could see her face, "Why do you have to leave?"

They had already had this exact same conversation before. They had already explained that they were doing this to help Skye, that her separation anxiety wasn't something that most kids had to deal with and that they were trying to help her, but Skye was refusing to accept it. She reminded herself that even though Skye's dark brown eyes looked so sad, she couldn't give in. That wouldn't help anyone and even though this was difficult, it was for the best.

She turned Skye sideways in her lap so that it was easier to see each other's faces, "You know why baby. It'll help you in the long run."

Skye's eyes started to fill with tears and Mel felt her heart crack. When Skye spoke, her voice was wobbly, "Why can't I come with you?"

Forcing herself to stay strong, she moved a hand so that she could caress Skye's cheek, "I'm sorry Skye but you have to stay with Jay. Your dad and I will only be gone for an hour and then we'll be back together again. You'll be fine baby."

Skye shook her head and threw her little arms around Mel's neck. She held the little girl close for a few moments and then patted her back, "C'mon, you can help me put away the dishes."

Setting Skye on the ground and standing up, she let out a little sigh when Skye immediately wrapped her arms around her leg. Ushering the little girl towards the sink, she didn't say anything, just handed Skye a cup to dry.

* * *

Jay's voice was soothing but Skye was ignoring her. This was all her fault anyways. It was Jay's idea for her mom and dad to leave her and Skye wasn't happy with her therapist.

"Come on Skye, you're mom and dad need to leave."

She just wrapped her arms tighter around her dad in response.

She felt him pat her back and try to set her on the ground but she didn't let go.

Her dad's voice sounded weird when he said, "Jay, I don't-"

Her therapist cut him off, "No, you guys need to leave now." Jiaying moved so that Skye could see her, "Come on Skye, you need to say goodbye and then we can go play."

She didn't want to go play, she just wanted to stay with her mom and dad. She shook her head and buried her face in her dad's neck.

Skye didn't look up even though she heard the grown-ups murmuring to each other. She stayed hidden until she felt someone grab her out of her dad's hands and gently set her on the ground. She made a noise of protest and quickly went to grab onto her dad's leg but was stopped when her mom put her hands on her shoulders, "Skye, look at me."

Raising her eyes up to look at her mom, she was rewarded with a small smile, "Thank you. We need to leave now okay? We'll be back soon and you're going to be fine."

She shook her head, "Please don't leave mommy."

Rushing forward, she gave her mom a tight hug and felt a little better when she felt her hug her back. Maybe they would stay?

Her hopes were crushed when her mom gently pushed her back, "You be good for Jay okay? We'll see you soon. I love you to the moon and back-"

Even though Skye was sad and upset, she finished for her, "More than all the stars in the sky."

Her mom smiled at her and pressed kiss to her forehead. She stepped back too quickly for Skye to trap her in another hug but she had no trouble hugging her dad, who had moved in front of her so that he could say goodbye.

She pressed her face against his stomach and tried to hold him tight enough so that he wouldn't be able to leave, "Daddy, don't leave me. Please."

When she looked up at his face, she saw that her dad was having one of his silent conversations with her mom. When he finally looked down at her, Skye could tell that he was going to leave. She clenched his shirt between her fingers and refused to let go.

Her dad ran his hand over her head and gave her a small smile, "You be a good girl okay? I love you."

She shook her head, "If you love me then why are you leaving?"

She knew as soon as she said it that it wasn't very nice but she was so mad and sad and upset that she didn't really care. She didn't want her mom and dad to leave her but they were doing it anyways and it _hurt_.

Skye felt tears start to drip down her cheeks and heard Jay say, "Skye, you know your mom and dad love you very much."

Staying silent, she felt her dad pry her fingers away from his shirt and press a kiss to her palm before gently placing her hand back down by her side, "We'll be back in an hour Skye, we love you."

Feeling helpless, all she could do was watch as her parent's grabbed their keys, cast one last glance her way, and walked out the door.

She tried to run after them but was stopped when Jiaying reached out and held onto her hand. She tugged but her therapist wouldn't let go of her. Quickly shaking her hand up and down in an attempt to get Jay to let go, she made a frustrated sound and felt her tears fall faster, "Let go! Let go of me!"

Jay's grip on her hand didn't loosen and she stayed quiet. After a few minutes, Skye _knew_ that her parent's would have left by now so she stopped resisting and starting crying harder. This was all Jay's fault!

She pointed a finger at her therapist, "W-why did you make them leave m-me? I hate you!"

She didn't even care that she had told Jay, someone she loved dearly, that she hated her. Her emotions were so jumbled, they hadn't been this mixed up in a long time, and she needed to be mad at s _omeone_ and since her family was gone, Jay was all that was left.

Finally, Jiaying let go of her hand and she crumpled to the ground. Pulling her knees close to her chest, she rested her head on them and cried. She didn't know how long she stayed like that but by the time she lifted her head, her face felt hot, her head hurt, and she didn't think that she could cry anymore.

Jiaying was sitting next to her and gave her a concerned look, "Do you feel a little better?"

She shook her head. Her parents were still gone and it felt like there was a giant, gaping hole in her chest. So many things could happen while they were away, _bad things_ , and she didn't feel safe without them here. What if they never came back?

Jay rifled through her purse and offered Skye a tissue. She stared at it for a second before taking it and using it to wipe her tears away, "Thanks."

Scooting closer to her, Jay rubbed soothing circles onto her back and Skye felt bad for what she had said earlier, "I don't hate you."

Jay nodded, "I know Skye."

They sat in silence for a little while and Skye leaned into Jay, watching the door and willing her parents to walk through it.

They didn't.

Jay tapped her shoulder, "Do you want to go talk in your room?"

Shaking her head, Skye pointed to the door, "I want to stay here."

"Okay, is it alright if we talk?"

Skye shrugged.

Jay moved so that she was sitting across from her rather than next to her, "I know you're pretty upset right now Skye."

She made a face at that. She felt _more_ than upset right now. She felt empty.

"But we're doing this to help you."

It didn't seem like this was helping anything, it seemed like everything was ten times worse than before.

"So why don't we talk about how you're feeling right now?"

Skye wasn't sure what she was feeling, she had gotten good at identifying what her emotions were but right now, they were a giant mess.

She stayed silent and Jay studied her, "You're upset that your parents aren't here, right?"

Skye nodded.

Jay tilted her head in that way of hers, "Why do you think you're this upset? What're you afraid of Skye?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know, I just like it when mommy and daddy are here with me."

Jay nodded, "I know Skye, its great when they're with you, isn't it? But why is it so bad when they're not?"

Skye thought about it. It seemed like an easy question: it was bad because they were gone. Wasn't that a good enough answer? Skye knew it wasn't because Jay kept prodding her to think about it some more.

She rubbed her moon pendant between her fingers and sniffled, "I don't know, what if something bad happens when they aren't here? What if they don't come back?"

Jay gave her a tiny smile, "There it is. I know that stuff is pretty scary to think about, huh?"

Skye nodded and continued to grip her necklace tightly.

Jiaying kept talking, "We both know that your mom and dad will a _lways_ come back to you, don't we?"

Skye nodded again. There was no doubt in her mind that May and Phil would always be there for her. They would always come back to her and she _knew_ that… but there was a small part in her brain that still had doubts. She knew that they would always come back to her but what if something happened to them so that they couldn't?

Jay reached forward and held her hand, "I know you hate this, it's not easy on us either, but we're doing this to help you. In thirty minutes, you're parents are going to walk through that door and you're going to see that it's okay to be away from them."

She still couldn't see how this was helping her but she didn't really have a say in it either way so she just nodded and continued to stare at the door.

Jay moved so that she was sitting next to her again. After a little while, Jay spoke up again, "Skye, we're going to have to do this again, you know that right?"

Her parents had told her that last night but that didn't mean she had to like it.

Jay kept talking, "How about next time we go to the park or something? We can have some fun."

She shrugged and kept her eyes on the door. As time passed, she leaned against Jay's side and felt herself start to grow a little bored. Her chest still felt empty and her heart was hurting but she had kind of gotten used to it by now, "Can I have an apple?"

Her voice must have surprised Jay because the woman jumped a little before straightening up, "Of course!"

Jay sounded really excited about getting her an apple but Skye shook off her weird behavior. She stayed seated while Jay went into the kitchen and brought an apple back to her before sitting back down. She slowly at her snack and continued to watch the door.

After an eternity, she heard footsteps outside the door and quickly stood up. As soon as the door was open, she sprinted towards the first person she saw.

Her mom was a little surprised when she crashed into her legs but recovered quickly. Skye hugged her legs tight before trying to climb up her, "Mommy! You came back!"

Her mom lifted her up and hugged her close before her dad leaned over and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "We said we would be back sweetie."

She knew that but still.

She wrapped herself around her mom, "Don't leave again, please."

Her mom leaned back and she reluctantly tilted her head back so that she could see her face, "You know we have to Skye, but not for a few days."

Skye would take that as a win for now. Burying her face back into her mom's shoulder, she heard Jay say, "See Skye? You were fine while your mom and dad were away. Nothing bad happened to you or them."

She shrugged. Maybe Jay was right, maybe her fears were kind of silly and she knew that now, but that didn't mean she liked being away from her mom and dad. Even though she was still kind of mad at Jay for making this happen, she trusted her. Jay had helped her through a lot and if she thinks that this is going to help, then Skye trusted her. Even though it was terrible and she hated it.

Reaching out, she pulled her dad close so that she was sandwiched between her parents and finally felt herself start to relax a little.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I might do another chapter about this but idk. Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you to everyone who takes the time to leave a review. If I could, I would hug all you beautiful people :) xx -Ariel


	37. Skye Has Separation Anxiety Part 2

**Hey guys! This is a lighter, fluffier continuation of the last chapter dealing with Skye's separation anxiety. This is Skye on a good day (where as the last chapter was her on a bad day) and I just wanted to be able to touch on how varied separation anxiety can be :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next. Thank you for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye had kind of forgotten how her parents were going to have to leave her again but now that the day had arrived, it was the only thing on her mind. Jiaying was supposed to come over and take her to the park for an hour so that her parents could go and do whatever they did while they were away from her. Even though everything had turned out okay last time, that didn't mean that everything would turn out okay _this_ time. The thought of her parents leaving her was making her tummy feel weird and she didn't like it.

Right now, her mom and dad were both sitting at the table looking over papers for work and she kept walking between them. She left her mom's side and wandered over to her dad. She stood on her tiptoes and leaned on his thighs so that she could see what he was looking at.

Skye pointed to the large stack of papers in front of her, "That looks boring."

Her dad turned to look at her, "It _is_ boring."

Scrunching up her nose, she said, "Then why are you reading it?"

"Because I have to. You, on the other hand, do not." He poked her tummy and she squirmed away from him, "Why don't you go play sweetheart?"

She shook her head, "I don't wanna play."

Making her way back over to her mom, she ducked under May's outstretched arms so that she could climb onto her lap. She heard her dad let out a breath but he went back to reading his boring papers. She leaned back against her mom's chest and watched her scribble some notes onto a legal pad.

They sat in silence for a little while and the unsettling feeling in Skye's tummy increased the more time passed. She hadn't realized she was squeezing her mom's thigh until her mom gently pried her fingers off of her and pressed a kiss to her knuckles.

Her mom set her pen down and Skye could tell that she was staring at her but she didn't look up, "Jay will be here soon."

Skye nodded reluctantly. She loved her therapist but she would be very happy if she didn't show up today.

Her mom gently patted her thigh so that Skye would look up at her. Her mom's forehead had the little lines on it that only appeared when she was concerned, "You guys are going to go to the park right? That'll be fun!"

May's overly enthusiastic voice did nothing to calm her nerves, "You can come too and we can all have fun."

Her dad glanced up from his work and gave her a firm look, "Nice try sweetheart but you know that we have to go."

"But why?"

"Because it's going to help you?"

She tilted her head, "Why?"

Her dad glanced at her mom before focusing back on her, "Because it'll help with your separation anxiety."

"Why?"

Her dad gave her a warning look, "Skye."

She leaned further against her mom, "Yes?"

Grinning, her dad reached over and tickled her sides. She pushed his hands away and wrapped her mom's arms around her and used them as a shield. Phil said, "You're doing that thing where you ask a lot of questions because you think it's funny."

She shook her head, "No I'm not."

Her dad made a silly face, "Yes you are."

She leaned towards her dad, "Nuh uh!"

Her dad leaned towards her, "Uh huh!"

Skye laughed because her dad was being funny and acting like a little kid. Her mom waved a hand between them, "Okay you two."

Grinning, she forgot all about Jay until the doorbell rang a few seconds later. Suddenly her good mood disappeared and she turned around in her mom's lap so that she could wrap her arms around her neck and her legs around her waist.

Standing up, her mom tried to set her on the ground but Skye just held on tighter. She heard her mom sigh but she just readjusted her grip so that Skye was more comfortable and walked towards the door. Jay was here and her parents were going to have to leave and there was a giant knot in Skye's tummy.

Turning her head, she saw her dad open the door to reveal a smiling Jay waiting on the other side, "Hey guys!"

Her therapist surveyed the scene in front of her and focused on Skye, "You ready to go have some fun?"

She stared blankly at Jay. Her therapist had to know that she was one hundred percent against this, didn't she?

Jay looked back to her dad and the focused on her again, "I'm going to take that as a yes. Skye, say goodbye to your mom and dad okay?"

She hugged herself closer to her mom, turned her face so that it was pressed against her neck, and shook her head.

She felt her mom comb her fingers through her hair and it made her feel a little better, "Skye, this was how you felt the last time we left but everything turned out fine, remember? Everything will be fine this time too."

Mumbling, Skye said, "How do you know?"

Her mom pressed a kiss to the side of her head, "Because I'm your mom and I know everything."

Skye couldn't help but smile a little.

Picking her head up so that she could see her mom's face, she said, "You don't know _everything_ mommy."

Tilting her head, her mom spoke seriously, "Oh yes I do, and I know that you're going to be fine."

Her dad walked up and stood beside them, "Why don't we go get some ice cream when we get back?"

Skye would _never_ say no to ice cream, "For real?"

Her dad nodded, "For real, but we have to leave so that we can come back and go get it."

While the thought of ice cream was enough to get her to loosen her grip on her mom, she still wasn't happy about her parents having to leave her, "I don't like it when you guys leave."

Her mom hugged her close, "I know baby."

This time when her mom went to set her on the ground, she let her. Rushing forward, she hugged her dad and pressed her face against his stomach. He wrapped her in a tight hug and patted her back, "You be good and have fun alright? I love you."

Her voice was muffled by his shirt when she said, "I love you too."

Walking over, her mom smoothed a hand over her head, "I love you to the moon and back-"

She unwrapped one arm from around her dad so that she could take her mom's hand off of her head and hold it, "More than all the stars in the sky."

Her parents stepped back and she looked up at them. They smiled at her, said goodbye to Jay, glanced back at her one last time, and walked out the door.

Running towards the living room window, she peered outside and watched her parents get in the car and drive away. Her heart was aching and she felt her lower lip start to wobble but Jay didn't give her a chance to be sad, "Let's go to the park Skye."

She took Jiaying's offered hand and let her therapist tug her out the door and down the street. Even though it felt like there was a hole in her chest, Jay never let her dwell on it. If they weren't swinging on the swings, they were climbing across the monkey bars or making castles in the sandpit. Skye didn't even notice that an hour went by until Jay was telling her it was time to go home.

She held her therapist's hand as they made their way back home and Jay said, "Did you have fun?"

Skye nodded, "Yeah, you're fun to play with."

Jay grinned, "Thanks Skye, you're fun too.

Smiling to herself, Skye swung their interwoven hands between them.

They were quiet for a little bit and Jay was the one to break it, "How're you feeling?"

Skye surprised herself, "I'm okay."

"See? You're mom told you that you'd be fine."

Skye scrunched up her nose, "Maybe she _does_ know everything."

Jiaying laughed and they made their way down the street and towards her house. When she saw her parent's car parked back in the driveway, she pulled on Jiaying's hand and started jogging towards her house. Reaching the door, she let go of Jay's hand and pushed it open.

Her parents were sitting in the dining room so she ran towards them and crashed into her dad's legs. He wrapped her up in a hug and she jumped up and down until he pulled her onto his lap, "You're back!"

Her mom reached over and caressed her cheek before sitting back, "Did you have fun with Jay?"

Skye nodded, "Yeah, but I still missed you guys."

Jay sat down across from her mom, "Skye it's okay to miss your parents when you're away from them, that's normal, we're just trying to help you get rid of the anxiety that comes with being apart from them."

Skye cuddled close to her dad and leaned her head back against his shoulder, "Okay."

Her mom looked surprised, "Okay?"

She nodded again. She didn't like being away from her mom and dad, hated it even, but Jiaying thought that this was going to help her. Jiaying had helped her work through so many different issues that she trusted her to help her with this, even though she hated it.

Hopefully looking up at her dad, she gave him a smile, "Ice cream?"

"I think it's well deserved."

She looked back to Jiaying, "Can Jay come too?"

Her dad stood up with her in his arms and nodded, "If she has time, she's more than welcome to join us."

Jiaying laughed and stood up from her seat, "I'd love to come."

Skye tapped her dad's shoulder, "Let's go, let's go, let's go! I want chocolate chip!"

* * *

What'd you guys think? I know it was short but I think it was cute :) If you guys have any prompts for me, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr and I'll add it to the poll!

Special thanks to storybuyer, memorysdaughter and charlotteredmond99 for letting me bug you guys with sequel ideas. Hopefully I'll have it planned out soon so that I can start writing it! Thanks for reading xx -Ariel


	38. Skye Loses Her Necklace

**Hey guys! This prompt was inspired by GothicPheonix's prompt: "Skye loses her necklace." Just a quick reminder that the necklace I'm talking about here is that one that Wanda and Pietro sent her in You Can Trust Me.**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next! Thanks to everyone who has helped me with ideas for my sequel! You're all lovely and i'm going to try to start writing this weekend! :)**

 **Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye stared outside her car window and softly sang along to The Little Mermaid song that was playing. It was raining outside and the sky was dark grey but she didn't really mind. She liked the rain. It was fun to play in and whenever it was rainy, her family always had a movie night or a game night and that was always really fun.

She was watching the raindrops race down the window when her mom turned down the music a little so that Skye could hear her, "What'd you learn in school today?"

Thinking back to her time in the classroom, Skye grinned, "We played games."

Her mom glanced at her through the rearview mirror, "Like what?"

Skye started kicking her legs back and forth and went back to looking at the raindrops on her window, "Duck Duck Goose."

"You guys played that inside?"

Skye smiled and nodded her head, "Yeah, we pushed all the desks to the side of the room so that we could do it. It was fun."

"Well it sounds like you had a good day."

"I did."

Instinctively, Skye's hand wandered up to her throat so that she could grab onto her moon necklace. When she didn't feel anything, her eyes widened and she reached her other hand up and tried to see if she just hadn't felt her necklace the first time.

She couldn't feel her necklace.

Squinting her eyes so that she could see her reflection in the window, she let out a little whimper when she didn't see her necklace around her neck. It was _always_ there.

Maybe it had just fallen off when she had gotten into the car. Keeping that thought in mind, she felt around her booster seat and came up empty. Leaning over, she ignored the way her seatbelt was pushing against her and looked at the floor. Her arms couldn't reach the floor because of her dumb seatbelt and she let out a frustrated sound.

Her mom spoke up, "Skye? What're you doing?"

She continued her search as she answered, "My necklace."

"What about it?"

She sat upright and let out a frustrated breath, "I can't find it!"

Agitatedly pushing her hair out of her face, she searched for her necklace in the seat beside her while her mom answered her, "Okay calm down sweetie, we'll find it."

She stuck her hands between the seats and fished around before whimpering when she felt nothing, "I am calm! I just need to find it!"

"Okay, we're almost home and I'll help you look for it. I'm sure it's here somewhere."

Skye leaned back against her seat and tried not to cry. Wanda and Pietro had given her this necklace when she first came to live with her family and it meant _everything_ to her. Besides being one of the prettiest things she owned, it was also her most precious and cherished object. It had been with her through too much for her to just lose it like this.

As her mom turned into their driveway, Skye blinked away her tears and fumbled with her seatbelt until it unlocked so that when her mom stopped the car, she could immediately open her door and hop out. Before her mom could even open her own door, Skye leaned into the car and started searching beneath the car seat. She let out a frustrated groan when all she saw was some gum wrappers and an empty water bottle.

She glanced around the backseat one more time and slapped the seat when she didn't see her necklace. It could be anywhere, in her classroom, in the school parking lot, somewhere in her front lawn, in the school cafeteria, thinking of all the places that her necklace could be made the tears that had been welling up in her eyes finally fall.

Skye felt someone stand behind her and she immediately turned around and wrapped her arms around her mom in a tight hug. Pressing her face against May's tummy, she felt her mom run her fingers through her hair and Skye didn't hold back her sobs. She couldn't believe how careless she had been. When her brother and sister had given her that necklace, she had finally started to think of them as her family. They had seen it in a shop and thought of _her_ and for Skye, that meant everything to her. She _hated_ herself for losing it.

Her mom squeezed her tight before gently pushing her away, "It's probably in your room sweetie, we'll find it."

Trying to catch her breath, Skye shook her head, "It could be _anywhere_ mommy. What if it's gone forever?"

Reaching past her to grab her backpack, her mom shook her head confidently, "No, we'll find it. C'mon baby."

Her mom held out her hand and Skye sniffled before grabbing onto it. May gave her a reassuring look and led her into the house. Skye wiped her face with her free hand and let herself be tugged along.

When they were inside the house, her mom let her backpack slide to the ground and turned to her, "We'll start looking in your room, alright?"

Skye nodded and wiped away the last of her tears, "Okay."

Squeezing her hand, her mom led her up the stairs and towards her room, "If it's here, we'll find it baby, don't worry."

Even though her mom's words were reassuring, there was no way that Skye _wasn't_ going to worry. They entered her room and Skye immediately dropped to the floor to search under her bed while her mom made her way over to Skye's closet.

* * *

After an hour, they had torn apart Skye's room, scoured the bathroom and playroom, searched through the living room, and combed through the kitchen and dining room. Her necklace wasn't here.

She had tried to remain focused while she was searching for it but now that she knew it wasn't here, all she could think about was how terrible she felt for losing her necklace.

Skye didn't really care if she was acting like a little baby, she just sat in the middle of the dining room floor, pulled her knees to her chest, and cried.

As a foster kid, she never really had things of value. She had hand-me-down clothes and rejected toys and her necklace was one of the first real things of value that she had ever been given. Wanda and Pietro had seen the beautiful star and moon necklace and thought of her. They cared enough about her to buy it for her and send it all the way across the ocean just to give it to her. That necklace reminded her of her family and it had helped her get through a _lot_. She held onto it when she was scared or nervous and it always made her feel better and right now, all she wanted to do was rub the warm metal against her fingertips but she couldn't because she had been careless and had lost her favorite thing in the whole world.

She felt gentle hands start to rub soothing circles on her back and instinctively crawled over onto her mom's lap. She curled herself around May and her mom wrapped her up in a tight hug and let her cry into her shirt.

Her mom rubbed her hands through her hair like she always did when she comforted Skye, but right now, it didn't calm her down as much as it usually would have, "We'll find it Skye."

Skye just pressed her face against her mom's neck and mumbled, "It's not here, it's gone."

Instead of the lie that Skye had been expecting to hear, her mom gave her the truth, "You're right baby, it might be gone, but if that's true, I need you to know that it was just a necklace. We can always get you a new one sweetie."

Skye pulled away from her mom as a flash anger rushed through her, "You don't get it! It wasn't just a necklace mommy!"

Her mom's forehead scrunched up in confusion, "What do you mean?"

Skye let out a breath and tried to think of how she could explain it, "It was _more_ than a necklace."

Her mom silently urged her to go on and Skye struggled to find the right words, "Wanda and Pietro gave it to me because they love me and I'm their sister."

Her mom still looked confused, "I know that baby."

Skye shook her head and tried to explain it better, "They gave it to me because they wanted to show me that I was a part of this family and now that it's gone…"

Her mom pulled her into a tight embrace, "Skye, you have to know that even without the necklace, we're all still a family."

"I know… but the necklace was real proof that someone… someone loved me enough to get me something just because they thought I would like it and it would make me happy. No one had ever really done that before."

Skye took in a shuddering breath and felt her eyes well up with a new batch of tears, "And now… now I lost it."

She willed herself not to cry even though she really, really wanted to and hugged herself closer to her mom instead.

Her mom gently patted her back, "I'm sorry, I know you loved that necklace."

She did love it. She would do anything to get it back right now, _anything_ , that had to count for something right?

Her mom hugged her for a little while longer and said, "We'll go to school early tomorrow so that we can look for it."

She leaned back and gave her mom a wobbly but grateful smile, "Okay."

Pressing a kiss to Skye's forehead, her mom stood up with her in her arms and made her way into the living room. She turned on the tv and plopped down onto the couch with Skye on her lap. They sat in companionable silence for awhile and Skye appreciated it. Her neck felt naked and lighter than usual and all she could think about was her beloved necklace sitting in a puddle in the parking lot or getting stepped on by a bunch of kids at school.

The more she thought about it, the sadder she got, so she tried to focus on the sounds coming from the tv and the way her mom was rubbing circles on her waist with her thumb.

Suddenly the door flew open and Trip and Natasha walked in with smiles on their faces. They both threw their backpacks on the ground, not caring that their dad was going to tell them to pick them up as soon as he got home, and walked into the living room to join them.

Trip collapsed onto one chair while Nattie sat on another and he studied them, "Why the long faces?"

Skye's lower lip trembled and luckily her mom saved her from having to answer that question, "Skye lost her necklace."

Trip's smile immediately dropped and he gave her a sympathetic look, "I'm sorry Skye."

Nattie held out her hand and stood up quickly, "Wait!"

Her sister jogged back over to her backpack and brought it over to them. Natasha unzipped her bag and rooted around in it for a couple of seconds before letting out a triumphant grin and thrusting Skye's necklace at her, "Here! I found it on you chair in the dining room this morning and didn't want to lose it so I brought it to school with me."

Skye quickly grabbed her necklace out of her sister's hands and held it close to her chest. She was so relieved that her necklace wasn't lost and was safely in her hands that she couldn't help it, she started crying again. Apparently, today was a crying kind of day.

Studying her necklace, she smiled through her tears when she saw that it was okay. The little blue star was still hanging happily from the end of the crescent moon and it didn't look any worse for wear.

Making sure that her necklace was securely in her hand, she reached forward and hugged Nattie tightly. Her sister laughed and hugged her back before gently pushing her back and wiping the tears off of her cheeks, "You okay?"

Skye nodded and rubbed her moon pendant between her fingers and the action was so familiar and comforting that her tears slowed down and came to a stop, "Yeah. I thought it was gone forever!"

Nattie shook her head, "Nah, I think that clasp is a little loose and that's why it fell off."

Skye worriedly looked at her necklace and saw that her clasp was hanging half open, "Is it broken?"

Her mom leaned over and examined it, "No, we can easily fix this sweetie. You're necklace is fine."

Finally relaxing a little, Skye sat back down on the couch and looked at her necklace, "We need a super strong clasp, okay mommy?"

Her mom let out a breath and ran her fingers through Skye's hair, "Baby, with everything that went on today, I'm considering putting a padlock on it so that you never lose it again."

Skye seriously considered that and her mom laughed a little, "I was joking Skye."

* * *

Let me know what you thought! I think we've all been where poor lil Skye was when she thought she lost something she loved :(

Also, which one-shot has been your favorite so far? I'm really curious to know! Mine is still the one where they all went to the beach :) Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	39. Trip Isn't The Best Babysitter

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by Ari loves all 2k14 and it was really long but it went along the lines of Trip babysitting Skye and Mack calls him and needs his help with something so Trip pretty much cons Hunter into babysitting Skye for him. Also, Hunter helps Skye with her homework :)**

 **Thanks for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Are you sure you'll be alright?"

Tripp nodded and pushed their parents towards the door, "Yeah, we'll be fine. You guys go have fun."

Skye scurried after them. Her parents were going to lunch and an early movie with Tony and Pepper and Trip was going to watch her.

Her mom glanced back at them and lifted Skye up as she jumped at her. Her mom pressed a kiss to her cheek and turned to Trip, "Okay, Nat might need a ride home from Steve's so here are the keys to your dad's car." She tossed the keys to Trip and he easily caught them.

Trip nodded again, "No problem."

Her dad leaned over and pressed a kiss to the top of her head and her mom set her back onto the ground. Phil tapped the tip of her nose and grinned at her, "Have fun okay? If you need us, Trip can call."

She nodded and hugged him, "Okay, I love you."

Her dad gently patted her back and said, "I love you too," before turning to Trip and saying, "Please take care of Skye okay? This is a big responsibility."

Trip waved him off, "We'll be fine dad. I'm pretty sure we'll probably just play Mario Cart until you get back."

Skye stepped out of her hug with her dad and jumped up and down, "Yay!"

Her mom gave her a look, "As long as you get your math homework done, you can play video games. Got that Trip?"

Her brother nodded _again_ and pushed her parents out the door, "Got it. Bye guys, have fun. We love you!"

Skye peered out of the front door and waved, "Bye!"

Blowing a kiss to her, her mom waved back and got into the car. Skye kept waving until the car disappeared down the street and Trip pulled her back into the house. Hopping on the tip of her toes, she grinned up at her brother. She liked it with her siblings babysat her, "Can we go play Mario Cart now?"

Trip rubbed the back of his neck, "Mom said you had to do your math homework."

She scrunched up her nose and ran towards the staircase, "I'll do it later!"

She heard her brother sigh and grinned triumphantly when she heard his footsteps following her up the stairs and towards the playroom.

* * *

They had only made it through two different tracks when Trip's phone rang. He paused the game and Skye let out a dramatic groan and stretched out on the floor.

Trip tapped on his phone and raised it to his ear, "Hello? Oh, hey Mack."

Skye perked up and poked her brother's arm, "Tell Mack I say hi."

Her brother glanced at her before motioning for her to be quiet, "What? No, I can't, I'm watching Skye."

Skye whined because her brother wasn't listening to her, "Tell him I say hi!"

Trip waved his hands around and she crossed her arms irritably, "I can't come get you, I have to watch Skye. Why can't your parents?"

Skye listened to her brother's side of the conversation and giggled when he let out a long, suffering, sigh, "Seriously? That's like an hour away!"

She leaned in and whispered in Trip's ear, "Tell him I say hi okay?"

Her brother sighed again, "Mack, Skye says hi. Also, I'm not coming to get you."

Smiling triumphantly, she made herself comfortable on the floor again. She watched as Trip listened to what Mack was saying. His eyebrows were rising and he straightened up, "Hey! You said you wouldn't tell anyone! This is blackmail."

Skye wondered what they were talking about. Trip glanced at her before shaking his head, "Fine, I'll be there soon. You owe me."

Trip abruptly hung up and Skye smiled at him, "Did Mack say hi back?"

Her brother stood up and looked around. He tapped his phone again and said distractedly, "Yeah, he said hi. Why don't you play on single player okay? I have to make a call."

Scrunching up her nose at her brother, she switched the game to single player and started over. She was concentrating on her race but she still heard Trip say, "Hey Bobbi, so I have a favor to ask. Could you come watch Skye for a little bit?"

Trip paused for a moment and then sighed, "No, I totally forgot that you were working. Thanks anyway Bobbi, I'll see you later."

Skye set her controller down on the floor and gave Trip her full attention. He didn't even look at her before dialing another number, "Hey Hunter, you want to come over?"

She honestly had no idea what was going on right now.

"Yeah man, how about you come over now?... Okay, see you soon." Trip hung up his phone and motioned for her to follow him out of the playroom and down the stairs. She tugged on the back of his shirt and tried not to trip on his feet as she followed him, "What's happening?"

They stopped in the living room and her brother looked out the window before crouching down in front of her, "Hunter's going to come over and watch you for a little bit okay?"

"But you're supposed to be watching me Trip!" Skye stomped her foot and shook her head. She didn't want Hunter to watch her, she wanted Trip to.

Her brother gave her a guilty look, "I know and I'm sorry Skye but Hunter will only have to watch you for a little bit and when I get back, we can order pizza and watch Rapunzel."

Skye's eyes widened. It was hard to get her siblings to watch princess movies with her and it was a big deal that Trip was willingly offering to watch one with her, "You promise?"

He nodded and glanced out the window, "Yes, I promise."

Pumping her fist in the air, she smiled, "Yes!"

Trip was still looking out the window and he stood up when he saw a car pull into their driveway, "Okay, I'll be back soon. Don't forget to do your math homework, I'm going to check when I get back, and I'll be back in two hours."

Her brother looked from side to side and gave her a guilty look, "Also, can we keep this a secret?"

"What?"

Trip kneeled down in front of her and gave her a serious look, "Please don't tell mom and dad okay?"

Skye frowned, "You want me to lie to mommy and daddy?"

Trip shook his head, "It's not really a _lie_. Anyways, I'll be back before they come home and they'll never have to know."

She didn't want to lie to her mom and dad. Lying was bad.

Trip put a hand on her shoulder, "Please? Brothers and sisters have each other's backs. Do you have my back Skye?"

Skye didn't want to lie to her parents but she _really_ wanted to be a good sister so even though the thought of lying made her feel uneasy, she reluctantly nodded, "Okay."

There was a knock at the door and Trip straightened up, "Thanks Skye. I'll be back soon okay?"

She nodded again and watched as her brother opened up the door. Hunter smiled at them and walked into the house, "Hey guys, what's-"

Trip cut him off and glided past him and out the door, "Can you watch Skye real fast? I need to go pick up Mack."

Hunter looked confused, "What? But-"

Trip cut him off again, "Thanks Hunter, I owe you one!"

Her brother jogged to the car and hopped in before quickly backing out of the driveway and speeding down the street.

Hunter slowly turned to her and she laughed at the confused look on his face. He looked out the still open door and she pushed him out of the way so that she could shut it, "Hi!"

Hunter looked around the house, "What the bloody hell is going on?"

She pointed at him, "Oh! You said a bad word!"

He shook his head and took his phone out of his pocket, "Sorry love. I'm gonna call Trip real fast okay?"

She nodded and pushed him into the living room. He collapsed on the couch and put his phone to his ear. Skye sat down on the floor and started rolling a toy car around.

Hunter groaned and took his phone away from his ear, "He isn't answering." He turned to her, "Where'd Trip go?"

She shrugged and he sighed, "Where are your mom and dad?"

Pushing the toy car so that it drove up his leg, she said, "They're eating lunch with Tony and Pepper."

"Where's Natasha?"

She made the car flip off of his leg and land on the ground, "Steve's."

Hunter reached down and put a hand on her car so that she couldn't roll it around anymore, "Who's watching you?"

She thought that Hunter was pretty smart but he was acting kind of dumb right now, "You are."

Hunter's eyebrows rose, "No I'm not."

Skye looked around and spoke slowly so that Hunter would understand her, "Yes you are, Trip said so."

He was quiet for a few moments before closing his eyes and shaking his head, "Of course he said that."

Skye wasn't really sure what was going on so she stayed quiet until Hunter opened his eyes and looked at her, "Your brother conned me Skye."

She scrunched up her nose, "What does that mean?"

Hunter leaned back against the couch, "He tricked me."

Skye shrugged and went back to playing with her car. She heard Hunter let out a sigh, "So, what do you wanna do?"

"I have to do some math homework but then can we play Mario Cart? Trip was supposed to play with me."

"Sure Princess, why don't you bring your homework in here and work on it?"

Skye nodded and ran to get her backpack from her room. When she brought it back into the living room, she saw that Hunter had turned to television on and was watching it. She dropped her bag onto the floor and sat down next to it before pulling out her math workbook. Ms. Hill had started teaching them about fractions and Skye _really_ didn't want to do the practice problems.

Opening her workbook up and grabbing a pencil, she read through her first problem. She tried to understand what it was asking but couldn't. She wished her dad was here to help her. He was really good at helping her with her math.

Feeling her frustration rising, she moved onto the next problem.

By the time she made it to her last problem, her eyes were full of tears of frustration. She hadn't been able to complete one of her five problems and she felt really dumb. This was stupid. If Trip was here, he could have helped her with her math homework. Her brother took really hard, big kid math classes and he would have been able to help her understand fractions.

Throwing her pencil onto the ground, she angrily wiped her tears away and crossed her arms. She was mad at Trip.

Hunter's voice startled her when he said, "What's wrong Princess?"

Skye huffed, "My math is hard and Trip isn't here to help me and I'm very mad at him!"

Hunter stood up and smirked at her, "Join the club. What're you working on?"

Motioning aggressively towards her workbook, she said, "The hardest math problems in the history of the world." She looked at her workbook and the words and numbers on her paper seemed to be mocking her. She let out a cry of frustration, "This is dumb! I hate math! I hate it!"

Her eyes filled up with tears again and Hunter sat down beside, "Hey now, I could help you."

Skye gave him an unconvinced look, "Really?"

Hunter smirked at her, "Really. I'm in the same math class as Trip and I've already mastered…" he glanced at her workbook before continuing, "Fractions. I can help."

He gently rubbed circles onto her back and she felt herself calm down. Sheepishly, she grabbed her pencil from where it had rolled under the couch and settled down next to Hunter.

"They're really hard," She warned him.

Nodding seriously, he read through the first problem and turned to her, "I know the perfect way to teach you."

Abruptly standing up, Hunter made his way into the kitchen and Skye yelled after him, "What're you doing?"

Hunter reemerged with a box of Oreos and a plate in his hand. Skye perked up, "Cookies?"

He shook his head, "These are for learning."

Cookies were for eating, not learning. Hunter must have seen the displeasure on her face because he chuckled, "Don't worry, we can eat some too."

She smiled and he sat down beside her before pulling out five Oreos, "Okay, this problem says that there are five red marbles. Let's pretend the marbles are actually Oreos. If I take one Oreo away, how many are you left with?"

That was easy, "Four!"

Hunter smiled at her, "Good. So you have four out of five Oreos left. There's your fraction right there Princess."

When he explained it, it seemed so simple. How had she not been able to understand that before?

She wrote her fraction down in her workbook and pointed to the next problem, "Help me with this one."

They worked through the rest of her problems and Hunter let her eat three of the cookies before they went and played Mario Cart together. Hunter was a good babysitter.

* * *

After about an hour and a half, Skye heard the front door open downstairs and she paused their game, "Trip's back!"

She ran ahead of Hunter and flew down the stairs, "Trip! You're back! Do you want to play-"

Skye stopped talking when she saw her parent's standing in front of her rather than Trip. Her brother had said that he was going to be back before their parents got home but it looks like he was wrong.

She heard Hunter follow her down the stairs and when her parent's caught sight of him, they crossed their arms. Her dad looked around the house and said, "Where's Trip? And Hunter, what're you doing here?"

Hunter held his hands up in front of him and shook his head, "I'm just watching Skye."

Her mom zeroed in on her, "Where's Trip?"

Skye remembered that Trip had asked her not to tell her parents that he was leaving so she wasn't really sure what to say, "Um."

Her parents both approached her and her dad gave her 'the look'. His voice held a warning when he said, "Skye."

She swallowed thickly, "Um, he said I wasn't supposed to tell you."

Her mom's eyebrows rose and she gave her dad a look, "Oh really?"

Skye nodded.

Her dad looked behind her at Hunter, "Thank you for watching Skye. We can pay you."

Hunter slid past her and shook his head, "That won't be necessary sir. Besides, I ate half of your Oreos and that's payment enough." He turned to her and waved, "Bye Skye."

She waved back, "Bye!"

She watched as he walked out the door quickly and then it was just her and her parents.

Running forwards, she jumped towards her dad and he easily caught her, "I missed you!"

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, "We missed you too."

She leaned back and studied, "Aren't you back early?"

Her mom walked over and took her out of her dad's arms, "Pepper got called into work so we decide to see the movie next week instead."

She snuggled into her mom's arms and pressed herself close, "I did my homework. Hunter helped me! He's really good at helping."

They all moved into the living room and her mom sat on the couch with Skye in her lap, "That's great baby but where's Trip?"

She leaned against her mom's chest and watched as her dad sat down beside them, "I dunno. He got a call from Mack and then Hunter came over and then he left."

Her parents both looked angry and Skye tried to make it better because she didn't want them to be mad at Trip, "He said he would be back before you guys and that it would be like nothing happened!"

She didn't think that made her parents any happier.

Deciding it was better to remain quiet so that there was no way she could make the situation worse, she pushed the remote towards her dad and gave him a smile, "Spongebob?"

Her dad sighed and nodded before changing the channel to her favorite television show.

They watched an episode and a half before the front door opened up to reveal Trip. He already had a guilty look on his face.

Her parents stood up and Trip walked up and stood in front of them. She watched him look at the ground before he said, "I'm sorry."

Their mom's voice sounded angry when she said, "What was so important that you would leave Skye with Hunter and then ask her to lie about it? You're usually so much more responsible than this Antoine."

Oh no. They called him by his first name. They only did that when they were very upset.

Trip looked even guiltier, "Mack's car broke down and he had no way to get home. What was I supposed to do, just leave him on the side of the road?"

Their dad spoke up, "You could have called him a cab or gotten someone else to pick him up Trip. You don't just leave your little sister at home with one of your friends. You didn't even tell her where you were going! What if something had happened to you? We would have no idea where you were!"

Trip fidgeted around and wrung his hands in front of him, "I know, it was really stupid and I'm sorry. I made a huge mistake and I'm sorry."

Her dad shook his head, "Trip, we _asked_ you to look after Skye. She's our daughter and your littler sister and we trusted you with her life and you just left her."

Trip didn't say anything, he just continued to stare at his shoes and wring his hands. He looked really sad.

Skye moved over and grabbed onto her mom's leg and looked up at her. May ran a hand over her head and sighed, "Why would you ask your sister to lie for you? Why would you put her in that position?"

Trip finally looked up at them, "I'm sorry Skye, I wasn't thinking about you, I was thinking about me, and that was wrong."

Skye tried to say the right thing so that the sad look in her brother's eyes would go away, "It's okay Trip."

Her mom continued to run a hand over her hair, "It's not okay and we're very disappointed in you Trip."

Her brother looked even sadder, "I'm sorry mom, it won't happen again, I promise."

Her parents studied Trip and her dad finally nodded, "Okay, but you're grounded for two weeks. You come straight home after school, understand?"

Trip nodded quickly, "Okay."

He motioned her forward and Skye made her way over to her brother. He kneeled in front of her and she spoke up, "I tried to have your back Trip, I'm sorry you got in trouble."

He shook his head, "Me getting in trouble was my fault, not yours. I was a really bad brother today and I'm sorry. I didn't have your back."

She leaned forward and gave Trip a hug, "It's alright, I still love you."

Her brother hugged her back and squeezed her tight, "I love you too."

* * *

Let me know what you thought! Reading your reviews make me happy :) xx -Ariel


	40. Report Card Day

**Hey guys! This was inspired by TrooperCam's prompt: "Report Card Day"**

 **Quick little apology for the long time between updates but I've _finally_ started writing the sequel so unfortunately, updates for I Trust You are going to take a little longer to be posted. I'm sorry guys!**

 **Also, I just put up a new poll and it's got a few new prompts so please don't forget to head over to my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so, so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Okay you guys, please show these to your parents. It's very important that you don't lose them."

Ms. Hill gave her a smile and handed her a big envelope. Skye studied it and noted the school's insignia stamped on the front of it. This envelope looked really important because it _was_ really important.

Ms. Hill finished passing out the envelopes and smiled at them, "I'm very proud of you guys and I'm sure your parents will be too when you show them your report cards."

Skye couldn't sit still in her seat. She really wanted to see her report card.

"You have about five minutes before it's time to go so why don't you clean up and get ready to leave."

Shoving all of her things into her backpack, she quickly threw away her scrap paper and made sure her desk was neat before sitting back down and staring at her envelope. She _really_ wanted to open it and see how she did but she was nervous. Since living with May and Phil, she had tried really, really hard to do well in school but what if she hadn't tried hard enough? What if her grades were bad? She didn't want her mom and dad to be disappointed in her.

Jemma and Fitz wandered over to her desk with their torn open envelopes in one hand and their report cards in the other. They were both smiling and Skye could tell that they were waiting for her to ask how their grades were so she let out a breath and did exactly that, "How are your guys' report cards?"

Jemma waved hers around, "Great."

Fitz nodded in agreement, "Awesome."

Skye smiled at her friends, "Good job!"

Laying her report card on Skye's desk, Jemma pushed it towards her so that she could see all the good marks on it, "I got H's in everything!"

Fitz quickly put his report card on top of Jemma's and pushed her to the side a little, "So did I!"

They seemed really excited about getting H's but Skye wasn't really sure what those meant. Her last school had used a different grading scale and this one looked weird.

She pointed to Fitz's report card, "H's are good right?"

He nodded proudly, "Yep, H's mean High, S's mean satisfactory, P means Progressing, and N means Needs Improvement, so H's are the best."

Her friends took their report cards back and proudly held them against their chests while Skye sneakily shoved hers into her backpack. Jemma and Fitz were both really smart and they were really good at school. They never had trouble with their homework and they never needed one-on-one time with Ms. Hill. Skye always had trouble with her homework and had fifteen minutes of one-on-one time with Ms. Hill every day. She didn't think that her report card was going to be as awesome as her friends' and that made her feel a little sad.

Jemma made an impatient hand motion and said, "So?"

Skye knew her friend was asking about her report card but Skye pretended she didn't understand, "So what?"

Jemma and Fitz looked at each other before Fitz put a hand on his hip, "How'd _you_ do?"

Fidgeting from side to side, Skye looked down at the floor, "I dunno."

Fitz's voice sounded exasperated when he said, "Well, you can look at it you know."

She didn't want to look at it in front of her friends. It wasn't going to be as good as theirs and she didn't want to seem dumb around them, "Um, I want to open it with my mom and dad."

Looking up, she saw Jemma study her for a second before nodding, "Okay, you can just tell us later."

Letting out a relieved breath, she nodded, "Okay."

Ms. Hill caught their attention and they made their way over to the door so that they could go home. When they made it outside, Skye said goodbye to her friends and ran over to where her mom was waiting for her.

Wrapping her arms around her mom's waist in a tight hug, she felt May gently pat her back before stepping back and giving Skye a smile, "How was school?"

Skye shrugged and held onto her mom's hand as they made their way to the car, "It was okay."

Her mom opened the backdoor for her and Skye climbed into the car, "You didn't do anything new today?"

Her thoughts immediately went to the report card sitting inside her backpack but Skye shook her head and let her mom buckle her into her booster seat, "Not really."

* * *

She had successfully evaded bringing up her report card until her siblings got home. She had thought that since they went to different schools, they would probably get their report cards on a different day but she had been wrong.

Skye had been playing on the living room floor while her mom watched t.v. when Natasha and Trip had walked into the house. Rather than throwing their backpacks onto the ground like usually did, they brought them with them into the living room. Her siblings sat on either side of May on the couch and Trip pulled a slightly-crumpled piece of paper out of his bag and proudly presented it to their mom, "All A's."

Her mom looked over the paper and grinned, "Great job Trip, this report card is awesome."

Trip leaned back against the couch and grinned cockily, "It's not easy being this awesome but I manage."

Natasha reached over their mom and swatted Trip's thigh before pulling her own piece of paper out of her bag and handing it to their mom, "It's not all A's but it's still good."

May scanned the paper before reaching over and tugging Natasha close, "This is a great report card sweetie, I'm so proud of you."

Skye stood up and wandered over to her family so that she could scan over her sister's report card. It had a mixture of A's and B's with one C.

Natasha shrugged, "I'm not so great at math but I'll do better. I had a B but I didn't do so great on the last test and it brought my grade down."

Her mom nodded, "Okay, if you continue to have trouble, we can find you a tutor."

Natasha shook her head, "Steve's great at math, he'll help me if I ask."

Her mom patted Natasha's arm, "Well, it's only mid-term. We can bring this up before the semester's over."

Her sister nodded determinedly and Skye took a step back when her family turned to her. Her mom tilted her head and considered her, "Skye, do you have your report card too?"

Glancing over to where her backpack was resting against the couch, she grabbed onto her moon necklace and nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me sweetie? Let me see."

Skye fidgeted from side to side and tightened her grip on her necklace. She knew that she wouldn't have been able to avoid this forever but she really didn't want her mom to be disappointed in her if her grades were bad, "I was gonna wait 'til daddy got home to show you."

Her mom shook her head and her voice was nice and soothing when she said, "We can show him when he gets home baby, let's see it."

Reluctantly, Skye grabbed her backpack and purposefully took a long time searching through it before pulling her envelope out. She handed the closed envelope to her mom and quickly took a step back.

Natasha gave her a funny look, "Don't you want to know how you did?"

Skye just firmly shook her head.

Her mom reached an arm out and Skye hesitantly took a step forward so that her mom could pull her close, "Skye, we know how hard you've been working. Sure, this report card is important but we've seen how much you've improved and that's all that really matters."

Skye still wasn't convinced. She knew that she'd been working real hard but what if it hadn't been hard enough? Even with all the extra help, she still wasn't as smart as her friends were, they _never_ had to do extra worksheets, and she just wanted her mom and dad to be proud of her. She didn't want to let them down, "What if I did bad?"

Her mom pulled her onto her lap and Natasha intertwined their pinkies, "I'm sure you did fine маленькая звезда."

Her brother gently patted her knee, "Yeah girl, you're always doing homework and stuff. You work harder at school than me."

She tightened her hold on Nattie's pinky and leaned back against her mom's chest, "I worked really hard, I want to have good grades."

Her mom wiggled the envelope in her hand and said, "Why don't we look and see how you did?"

Taking a deep breath, she nodded. Her mom ripped open the envelope and pulled the folded up piece of paper out. Skye help her breath as her mom unfolded her report card and steeled herself for bad news. She knew she wasn't good at school and it was dumb to get her hopes up.

Once the report card was unfolded, Skye couldn't stop herself, she quickly looked it over. She was too impatient to actually read through and understand what it was saying so she fidgeted around and glanced back at her mom, "Is it good?"

Her mom gave her a smile, "It's great sweetie, look."

Skye looked at where her mom was pointing and listened to her when she said, "You got H's in Reading, Social Studies, Listening and Speaking Skills, Social Skills, Music, Art, and Gym. You got S's in Writing and Math."

Skye grinned, "So I did okay?"

She felt her mom press a kiss to the top of her head, "I'm so proud of you and look, Ms. Hill said that she's very impressed with your progress over the last few weeks and that you're a great student."

Skye looked over her report card, "Where did she say that?"

Her mom pointed to the bottom of the paper and Skye could see her teacher's handwriting. Ms. Hill had even put a little smiley face at the end of her comment.

Relief flooded through her. Maybe all of her hard work had actually paid off.

Skye knew that she had a big, goofy smile on her face but she didn't care. She was a good student! She wasn't as good as Jemma or Fitz but she was good enough for her mom to be proud of her and that was really all she cared about.

Her mom pulled her in for a hug, "Your dad is going to be so proud of you when he sees this."

Unlike before, she was actually excited for her dad to get home and so that she could show him her report card. She wanted him to be proud of her.

Her mom gave them back their report cards and they all sat around and talked about their days and watched t.v. until the front door opened and Phil walked into the house. Skye quickly jumped up and ran to him, waving her report card in front of her, "Look at my report card!"

She stopped in front of him and he gave her a quick hug before taking her report card from her. Skye fidgeted from side to side as he looked it over.

She watched as her dad smiled and looked down at her, "Skye! This is an amazing report card!"

Grinning proudly, she said, "Thank you."

Her dad leaned down and gave her another hug, "It looks like all your hard work is paying off, huh?"

She nodded and stepped onto his feet so that when he walked into the living room, she walked with him. He stopped in front of the couch and said, "How'd you two do?"

Trip and Natasha both handed their dad their report cards and Skye watched him as he read through them. Phil made a happy noise, "Wow, how are all my kids so smart?"

Trip cracked a smile and leaned back against the couch, "It's a natural gift."

Her mom smirked and her dad waved the report cards around, "These deserve to be hung on the fridge."

Nattie groaned, "Dad, aren't we a little too old for that?"

Her dad shook his head and Skye went with him as he made his way into the kitchen, "You're never too old for me to want to show you off."

He handed her her report card and a princess magnet and she hung her report card up on the fridge as her dad hung up her siblings'. She hopped off of her dad's feet and admired her report card, which was hanging proudly on the center of their fridge.

Her dad tapped her on the shoulder and she looked up at him, "You know, I really am very, very proud of you Skye."

It felt really good to hear that, "I know."

"Why don't we go out to dinner tonight to celebrate?"

She gave him a hopeful smile, "And ice cream?"

Her dad laughed and nodded, "It wouldn't be a celebration without ice cream, now would it?"

* * *

What'd you guys think? My mom's actually a first grade teacher so I used her report card template as the one I used in this chapter. Sorry if it's a little confusing but elementary school report cards are formatted so weirdly! Thank you so much for reading and if you have a prompt for me, you can send it in either on here or on my tumblr page and I'll add it to the poll! xx -Ariel


	41. Natasha's Letter To The Twins

**Hello my lovely readers! Quick heads-up that my university is having its fall break this week and I'm going home to see my family for the first time in months so I won't be updating for a little while (maybe a week and a half) so I'm sorry! The good news is that I've written a bit of the sequel and am aiming to start publishing it before October's over so that's pretty cool :)**

 **This is based off Sancturia's prompt about wanting to see the letter that Natasha wrote to the twins in You Can Trust Me. It's super important that you know that this takes place during chapter 22 of YCTM! Make sure to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own :)**

* * *

Dear Wanda and Pietro,

Hey guys, Skye's sending you a letter thanking you for her necklace and she totally loved it. You guys did awesome picking it out, she's so proud of her pretty necklace.

I miss you guys. I wish you could have gone to my dance recital tonight but mom and dad recorded it and they're going to send it to you. I know you'll both still be able to watch it but it's not the same without you both here, cheering me on and being obnoxious in the audience.

I think I'm getting the hang of this whole "big sister" thing but I'm not totally sure because Skye is just so easy to get along with that she's making it way too easy on me. I don't know how you both were able to stand me, I was a total nightmare when I was younger. Either way, you guys taught me what it was like to have siblings who were there to look out for me and you showed me how amazing a big brother or sister could be and I want to do the same for Skye. She deserves to have someone who has her back and I know you guys will but since you're so far away at the moment, I'll show her the ropes :)

I hope you're having a good time over there on the other side of the world. Things are settling down now that Skye's been living with us for a while so you aren't missing too much. Mom's only working half of the day now so that she's here when Skye gets home from school and it's nice to have her around more. Skye can get dad into a tiara in less than two seconds and he doesn't even care. Trip's killing it at football, I think he's practicing so hard so that he'll finally be able to beat you, Pietro. You really need to come back so you can see Skye face to face. She's adorable and funny and amazing and you'll love her so much.

Hurry up and come home! If you aren't back soon, I'm coming over there to get you and we both know that Europe won't be able to handle me.

I love you!

xo, Nat

p.s. mom got Skye some black combat boots and she thinks they make her look tough but she really just looks adorable.

p.p.s. call me okay?! I miss you guys.


	42. The Twins Reacting To Nat's Letter

**Hey guys! Marvel-Tolkien Fangirl wanted to see the twins' reaction to reading Nat's letter so here it is! This takes place after the twins flew home at the end of You Can Trust Me and they're finally getting Natasha's and Skye's letters. I'll be referencing Skye's letter as well so if you haven't read YCTM, this might be a little confusing.**

 **So since Halloween is my favorite holiday of all time, I've decide to do Halloween and fall related prompts for the rest of October so if you have any prompts for me, please send them in! Once October is over, I'll go back to writing the prompts from the poll :) Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Since Wanda and Pietro's study abroad program was so mobile, if they ever got letters or other things from home, they were usually sent to their supervising professor, Dr. Thomson. When Wanda got an email from Dr. Thomson saything that she and her brother had mail waiting for them, she was pretty surprised. Since they moved from country to country so frequently, it was extremely hard to send mail so her parents never did, they just talked on the phone or video chatted instead.

Pietro was in his last class of the day so she didn't bother waiting for him to get out before she made her way to Dr. Thomson's room. The sun was just starting to set and she couldn't help but grin a little as a gentle breeze blew strands of her hair away from her face. It was beautiful outside and even though she missed her family, she really loved being a part of her study abroad program.

Weaving through the other students, she entered Dr. Thomson's building and took the stairs to his room. She knocked on his door and waited a few moments until the door opened up and Dr. Thomson grinned down at her, "Hey Wanda, how're you doing?"

She spotted two envelopes in his hand and as much as she liked Dr. Thomson, he was a pretty cool supervising professor, she would much rather be reading those letters than talking to him, "I'm doing great." She pointed to the envelopes, "Are those for me?"

Dr. Thomson glanced down to the mail in his hand, "Yeah, they came in today."

He held out the envelopes and she grabbed them, "Thanks Dr. Thomson!"

Normally she would've hung around and chatted with Dr. Thomson, she was trying to get on his good side so that he would write her a reference letter to help her get into the medical program, but as she looked down at the mail in her hand, she saw Natasha's distinctive handwriting and she felt excitement rush through her.

She sent Pietro a text telling him to meet her in her room after he got out of his class and quickly walked back to her room. Gripping her letters tightly in her hand, she pushed her way through the groups of people standing around chatting and rode the elevator up to her room.

Once she unlocked her door, leaving it partially open for Pietro, and collapsed onto her bed, she studied her two letters. One was obviously sent by Natasha, it had her short and spiky handwriting on it. The other one had the same handwriting on it except for her and Pietro's names in the middle of the envelope. Their names were written in loopier and less organized handwriting. The 'e' in Pietro's name was backwards and Wanda grinned when she realized that this letter was probably written by Skye.

She missed her whole family but she really missed her little sisters. Natasha and Skye looked up to her (even though Natasha would never admit it) and she loved that. She loved that she was able to have such a big impact on their lives and she missed them terribly. Not including calls and video chats, Wanda had only spent a week with Skye but she loved her so much already and even though she really enjoyed her study abroad program, she was kind of excited for the semester to be over so that she would be closer to her family.

Knowing that Pietro would probably be upset with her if she read the letters without him, she anxiously stared at the door and tried to ignore the desire to rip open the envelopes and read what her sisters had written.

Tapping her foot impatiently, she anxiously stared at the door until it banged open and Pietro appeared. His backpack was half-open and it looked like his notes were about to fall out but he didn't seem to mind, he just dropped it to the ground and collapsed next to her on the bed.

Her brother let out a long, suffering sigh before turning to look at her, "What's up?"

She waved the two envelopes in his face and smiled, "We've got mail."

He snagged their letters from her hand and she let out an indignant sound and hit him on the arm. He just ignored her and studied their mail, "From Natasha and… Skye?"

She nodded and tried to grab the envelopes back from him but he held them out of reach, "Yeah, I think so."

Her brother grinned and said, "Which one do we wanna read first?"

"Let's see what Skye sent us."

Nodding, Pietro carefully ripped open Skye's envelope and pulled out a piece of paper. He scooted over so that they could both read over the letter at the same time. She spotted a little drawing at the bottom of the page but decided to read what she wrote first. Her littlest sister's handwriting was loopy and big and was written with a dark blue crayon but Wanda could still read it.

"Dear Wanda and Pietro,

Thank you for my necklace. I love it a lot and never want to take it off. I'm happy that you're okay with me being in your family. I wish that you were here with us so that we could go to the playground and play on the swings.

Love, Skye."

The letter didn't have a date on it but Wanda could tell that Skye had written this before she had been kidnapped and they had flown home to see her. She remembered how proud Skye had been of the necklace they had given her.

Looking at the bottom of the paper, Wanda saw a bright yellow sun, a baby blue sky, and light green grass. Standing on the grass was her family. They were all holding hands and Wanda thought that Skye was pretty good at drawing for a six year old. She could clearly see who each figure was supposed to be and Wanda's grin turned into a full-blown smile when she saw Skye had used a mixture of yellow and white to try to get Pietro's hair color right. Skye had drawn smiles on everyone's face and Wanda loved it.

She looked over at Pietro and saw that he was smiling too, "I miss the little munchkin."

Nodding in agreement, she carefully took the letter from Pietro, folded it, and held it close to her chest, "Me too. Let's read Natasha's letter."

Pietro ripped open Natasha's envelope and held it in front of him so that they could both read it.

Wanda smiled at the part where Nat said that Skye loved her necklace but felt sadness wash through her when Nat mentioned them missing her dance recital. She and Pietro had always gone to all of Tasha's dance recitals. Nat was so passionate about dancing, you could see that every time she danced, and her heart ached when she thought about all of the dances they were missing out on. She and Pietro always cheered ridiculously loudly at all of Nat's recitals and their sister would complain about it but they could tell that she secretly loved their support. She wished that she had been there for this recital.

Her feelings of sadness only intensified when Natasha talked about how she was figuring out how to be a big sister for Skye and how she was using them as an example.

Natasha had been a hellion when she first moved in with them. She was angry and distant and sometimes mean but Wanda and Pietro had tried to be as patient and kind with her as they could be. Natasha wasn't the type to freely talk about her emotions, that was something their sister usually only did with their mom or Jiaying, but it was heartwarming to hear how Nat thought that she and Pietro were amazing big siblings.

She missed being a big sister and she missed her little siblings. She hated how she was missing out on big parts of their lives and that they were so far away from each other.

She stared at the words on the paper for a few long moments before Pietro cleared his throat and she looked over at him. Her brother was staring at Nat's letter and was uncharacteristically serious when he said, "I really, really miss them."

Nodding in agreement, she scooted closer to her brother and sighed, "Me too."

They were both quiet for a little while until Pietro spoke up again, "This whole study abroad thing is amazing."

"Oh yeah, it's great."

He nodded along with her, "I love it."

Wanda agreed but she was still melancholic about missing her family so her agreement was feeble at best, "Totally. I love it too."

They were quiet for a few more moments and Wanda stared at her ceiling before saying, "I love our family too."

Pietro turned to her, "I mean, I know we called them yesterday…"

Wanda saw where he was going with this, "It couldn't hurt to call them again today…"

Her brother sat up and pulled out his phone, "Yeah, I bet mom and dad really want to talk to us."

She sat up next to him and watched him dial their mom's phone number, "If you think about it, we're doing them a favor."

Pietro put the phone on speaker and they listened to it ring a few times before their mom's voice filled the room, "Hey guys!"

Wanda grinned and she could hear Tangled music playing in the background and heard Skye's voice from a distance saying, "Tell them I say hi!"

Pietro smiled at her and they both got comfortable on her bed so that they could talk to their family.

* * *

What'd you guys think? Leave a review and let me know! Don't forget to send in some Halloween/fall related prompts and I'll write them out as soon as I can. Since there's only a week or two left in October, I'll be writing more frequently so that I can fit them in :) Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	43. Skye Carves Her First Pumpkin

**Hey guys! I'm starting off these Halloween/fall one-shots with a prompt sent in by Sanctuaria! Her prompt was a pumpkin carving session with the family and friends :)**

 **Let me know some of your guys' Halloween/fall traditions or send in a prompt and I'll write it out! I love fall and all things fall-related and my workload is pretty light right now so I'm ready to write a bunch! Once October is over, I'll go back to writing the prompts from the poll. Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

They had to take two cars so that they could all go to the pumpkin patch. As she, Jemma, Fitz, Natasha, and her parents hopped out of her dad's car, she saw Bobbi, Clint, Trip, Bucky, and Hunter hop out of Hunter's car. It was a Saturday and since Halloween was coming up, her mom and dad had suggested that they go get a pumpkin and carve it for the holiday. Naturally, it had grown from a small family event to a full-fledged friend outing so they had decided to make a day out of it. The first part of their mission was for everyone to find a pumpkin so that they could carve it at home.

Skye hopped up and down as she waited for everyone to gather around and smiled at the large pumpkin patch in front of her. There were pumpkins _everywhere_. There were rows and rows and rows of them and Skye spotted one that was almost as tall as she was. There were people milling about and other families searching for the perfect pumpkin but Skye was determined to find it. Even though it was the middle of the day, it was still chilly out and the light breeze blew her pigtails away from her face. The air was crisp and the smell of hay drifted towards her from where it was scattered all over the ground and from the bales that had pumpkins proudly displayed on them.

Snuggling into her coat, she tore her gaze away from the pumpkins when her dad spoke up, "Okay guys, everyone go find a pumpkin and meet up by the check-out table. Everyone be careful," Her dad gave her, Jemma, and Fitz pointed looks and then changed his mind, "Actually, you three each pair up with a big kid."

Skye immediately lunged for Bucky and grabbed onto his hand and Fitz made a face at her, "Hey! I wanted to pair up with him!"

She stuck her tongue out at her friend and grinned, "Too bad."

Jemma was holding onto Bobbi's hand and Fitz looked around at the rest of the big kids before walking over and standing by Hunter.

Her dad nodded, "Good. Okay, go find some pumpkins!"

She watched as everyone scattered. Clint and Nattie paired off and wandered over to where the little tiny pumpkins were sitting on the ground. Jemma and Bobbi ran off with Hunter and Fitz chasing after them. Trip walked over to where the giant pumpkins were sitting and her parents trailed after him.

Bucky squeezed her hand and she grinned up at him. He smiled back at her and said, "Alright Princess, let's go find the perfect pumpkin."

That was all the encouragement she needed before she was pulling Bucky towards the first row of pumpkins. Looking from side to side, she tried to find the perfect pumpkin.

After a few minutes, Bucky let go of her hand to go crouch beside a pumpkin. He pointed at it, "How about this one?"

Tilting her head to the side, Skye seriously studied the pumpkin. It was tall and thin and medium sized. The fat stem curved to the side and it was cute but it wasn't the one Skye wanted.

She shook her head and took a step back, "That's not the one for me."

Bucky cracked a grin and nodded, "Well if you don't want it, I'm gonna grab it."

He hauled the pumpkin into his arms and she went back to her search.

There were so many different types of pumpkins; big ones, small ones, short and round ones, and tall and skinny ones. They were different colors as well, some were dark orange and some were bright yellow, and Skye had no idea what kind she wanted. She hoped that she would know when she saw it.

Bucky kept pointing out potential pumpkins but they weren't the ones. They either had a dent on it or lumps or weren't the right shape but either way, she didn't like them. They kept searching for a long time until she spotted it.

Two rows away from her, there was a cute little pumpkin sitting on the ground. It was light orange, medium sized, and the skinny stem was curled.

Skye ran over to it and crouched down so that she could get a better look at it. She crossed her fingers and hoped that it didn't have any dents in it and let out a relieved breath when she found none.

Bucky caught up to her and leaned down, "Is this the one?"

Nodding, Skye wrapped her arms around the pumpkin and lifted it up. She grunted a little at how heavy it was but when Bucky offered to carry it for her, she brushed him off. They weaved through the rows of pumpkins and made their way to the check-out table. Jemma and Bobbi were already waiting there and when she saw their pumpkins, she smugly thought that her's was better.

Jemma was holding a tiny, dark orange pumpkin that was no bigger than a cantaloupe. Bobbi had a tall, skinny, orange pumpkin with uneven yellow spots sitting by her feet. She and Bucky walked up to their friends and Skye quickly set her pumpkin down. It was pretty heavy.

Jemma grinned at her, "I like your pumpkin Skye."

Skye smiled back at her friend, "Thanks!"

She turned around when she heard her sister's laugh and saw Nattie and Clint making their way over to them. She couldn't help but giggle when she saw the giant pumpkin they were holding between them. I was _huge_ and it looked heavy but Nattie and Clint walked over and easily deposited it onto the ground.

Walking over to their big pumpkin, she stared down at it. It went up her hips and Skye pointed at it, "That's your pumpkin?"

Clint and Nattie nodded proudly and her sister said, "Yep, we're sharing it."

Their pumpkin was taller than the chairs at her little tea party table and Skye grinned before she turned around and sat on it. Her feet dangled because they didn't touch the ground. Jemma ran over and sat beside her and they both giggled.

Clint stepped towards them and tickled Jemma's sides, "Hey, get off of that you little cuties."

Jemma laughed and Clint pulled her off of the pumpkin set her on his hip while Natasha did the same to Skye. Skye wrapped her arm around her sister and put her head on Nattie's shoulder.

They waited around and talked for a few minutes until they saw Hunter, Fitz, Trip, and her parents walking towards them. Hunter and Trip both had short and stocky pumpkins in their hands while Fitz was holding a tiny pumpkin by its stem. They all grouped together and Fitz walked over and stood beside Jemma's pumpkin where it was sitting on the ground by Bobbi's. He pointed to it, "Whose is that?"

Jemma wriggled around until Clint set her on the ground, walked over to her pumpkin, picked it up, and held it protectively in her arms, "It's mine."

Fitz put a hand on his hip, 'Mine is better."

Jemma made an indignant sound and mirrored him, "No, mine is!"

"Mine is!"

"No, mine!"

Skye cracked a grin. Their pumpkins looked exactly alike.

Her mom stepped between her two friend and put a hand on the top of each of their heads, "Okay, okay, both of your pumpkins looks amazing alright?"

Jemma and Fitz both regarded each other before taking their hands off their hips and nodding slowly. Her mom let out a breath of relief and then she did a double-take when she saw Nattie and Clint's giant pumpkin. She didn't even have to ask who's pumpkin it was, her mom just looked right at Natasha and raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

Her sister just shrugged and Skye made a sound of protest when the shrug jostled her head.

Her mom just shook her head and her dad stepped up and stood beside her, "Alright, let's pay for these and get home so we can carve them."

Her dad carried her pumpkin for her and she stayed in her sister's arms as they all made their way to the check-out table.

From behind her, she heard Fitz whisper, "Mine's still better."

Jemma sounded indignant when she said, "Fitz!"

* * *

Skye sat on her mom's lap and watched as her dad and Tripp laid newspaper down all over the table. Once the table was completely covered, everyone sat down and put their pumpkins in front of them. Her dad placed hers in front of her and Skye watched as Trip set some knives and sharpies down in the middle of the table.

Leaning back against her mom's chest, she smiled a little when she felt her mom run her fingers through her pigtails. Turning her head so that she could see her mom's face, she said, "Now what do we do?"

From across the table, Clint made a surprised sound, "You've never carved a pumpkin?"

For some reason, she started to feel embarrassed that she had never carved a pumpkin before. She felt her cheeks heat up and leaned further against her mom's chest.

Nattie smacked Clint on the chest and he looked guilty for a moment before her sister said, "No problem Skye, we'll show you the ropes."

All the big kids grabbed a knife and Nattie grinned at her, "First we have to take all the yucky insides out of the pumpkin."

The big kids cut out the tops of their pumpkins while her dad cut out the tops to hers, Jemma, and Fitz's pumpkins. Even though she was sitting on her mom's lap, she was still too short to see into her pumpkin so she crawled onto the top of the table, making sure not to move the newspaper around too much, and peered inside.

"Ew!" The inside of a pumpkin looked gross. There were slimy-looking seeds and orange strings hanging in it. She didn't know how she was going to get all of that out of there.

Bucky, Clint, and her mom laughed at the disgusted look on her face.

Pointing at her pumpkin, she said, "How do we get that stuff out?"

Hunter smirked at her and shoved his hand into his pumpkin, "We pull it out."

Skye thought that he was joking until everyone else put their hands into their pumpkins and started pulling the insides out. Jemma and Fitz were having a hard time getting leverage so they both climbed onto the table like she did.

She peered into her pumpkin again before looking over to her mom, "Do I really have to pull this stuff out with my hands?"

Her mom scooted her chair closer and nodded, "Yep. It's not as gross as it seems."

Skye didn't believe her. It seemed _really_ gross.

Everyone around her was laughing and Fitz was waving his his slimy orange hands in front of Jemma's face and was making it seem like he was going to touch her but Jemma had that look on her face that said if he did touch her, she would make him regret it, so Fitz was just pretending like he was gonna do it.

Deciding that she wanted to have fun too and the only way to do that seemed to pull out the insides of her pumpkin, she took a deep breath and quickly stuck her hand into her pumpkin before she could change her mind.

She shuddered when her hand made contact with the gooey insides. Grabbing a handful of the slimey stuff, she closed her hands into a fist and pulled it out. She felt some of the stringy pulp that were attached to the inside of the pumpkin slide through her fingers and squealed.

When she opened her hand back up, she saw a couple of seeds and some mushy orange stuff in it. Dropping the insides into one of the big bowls her dad was setting around the table, she kneeled over her pumpkin and stuck her hand back inside it. This time when her hand closed around all the slimy stuff, she wasn't as disgusted by it. A seed slipped through her fingers and she smiled at the unusual feeling.

She kind of liked it. It wasn't like anything she had ever touched before and even though it was kind of gross, it was cool at the same time.

When she finished pulling all the insides out of her pumpkin, her hands and forearms were stained orange and they were starting to feel a little itchy. Everyone else had finished with the insides of their pumpkins except for Clint and Natasha. Their giant pumpkin was taking a really long time but they didn't seem to mind.

She carefully climbed off the table with some help from her mom and shoved her orange-stained hands in her mom's face, hoping to get a reaction out of her. Her mom reeled back in disgust and nearly fell out of her chair. Skye started laughing and her mom stood up and ushered her into the kitchen.

Holding her hands above her head, she waved them a her mom and grinned when May quickly stepped to the side to her avoid her hands, "Mommy, look at my hands. They're orange!"

Her mom put a guiding hand on the small of her back and led her towards the sink, "I see them baby."

Pulling her little stool in front of the sink, her mom carefully helped her up the two steps and turned the sink on. Skye held her hands under the steady stream of water and watched as some of the mushy orange stuff on her hands swirled down the drain. Rubbing soap up and down her hands and forearms, she watched as her orange-tinted skin went back to its normal color.

Everyone else washed their hands and Skye went back into the dining room and waited for her mom to sit down so she could climb onto her lap.

After everyone was sitting back down again, Hunter passed around the sharpies and Nattie looked over to her, "Now we draw what we want to carve out."

Skye watched as her sister started drawing on her pumpkin and looked around to see what everyone else was doing.

Jemma and Fitz were both drawing scary faces onto their pumpkins while Trip made it seem like his pumpkin was smiling widely. Bobbi was writing "Happy Halloween" and drawing two ghosts onto her pumpkin while Hunter was attempting to draw a bat onto his pumpkin but he kept having to redraw it so Skye thought that he was having a tough time. Bucky drew an angry-looking face on his pumpkin and gave it vampire teeth.

Skye slid off of her mom's lap to go see what Clint and Nattie were doing with their pumpkin. Since Nattie was doing the drawing, she pushed Clint's hands out of his lap and clambered on top of him. She couldn't help but be a little jealous when she saw the silhouette of a witch riding on a broom that her sister was drawing onto their big pumpkin.

Skye wished that she could do something that cool with her pumpkin.

Her sister finished with her drawing and looked over to her, "You like it Skye?"

Nodding, she pointed over to her pumpkin, "Can you draw something for me?"

"Sure маленькая звезда."

Natasha stood up and Skye patted Clint's knee before hopping off his lap and grabbing onto her sister's hand. They made their way over to Skye's pumpkin and she seriously considered what she wanted her sister to draw on it.

Nattie tapped her shoulder, "What do you want me to draw Skye?"

Skye wanted her pumpkin to look cool and be halloween-ey but she was having trouble coming up with an idea. Thinking back to the movie her family had watched last night, she grinned, "Can you draw a cat, like the one in Hocus Pocus? And make it mad so that it's back is all arched!"

Her sister laughed and nodded before leaning over and drawing on Skye's pumpkin. Skye watched and when Nattie was done, she oohed and aahed over what her sister drew.

The cat's tail was long and S-shaped and it's back was arched. Its mouth was open like it was hissing and Skye could see two of its teeth. She loved it.

Throwing her arms around Natasha's waist, she squeezed her tight, "Thanks Nattie."

Her sister patted the top of her head, "No problem."

Jemma, Fitz, and Bucky were still drawing the faces onto their pumpkins but everyone else was already carving into theirs so Skye reached for a knife but a hand intercepted her before she could grab one.

Looking up, she saw her dad grab the knife she was about to pick up and he shot her a look, "I'll carve it for you. You can carve your own pumpkin when you're older."

Pouting a little, Skye huffed and climbed back onto the table so she could watch her dad carve into her pumpkin. She hovered next to him and he had to ask her to back up a few times but she didn't really care. Slowly, her dad finished with her pumpkin and she admired it.

It was _awesome_.

Squealing in delight, she turned her pumpkin around so everyone could see it.

Bobbi was helping Jemma carve her pumpkin while Trip carved Fitz's pumpkin for him but everyone paused to admire Skye's.

Bucky said, "That looks really cool Skye."

Clint agreed, "Yeah Princess, nicely done."

Blushing a little, she accepted everyone's compliments and turned around on the table so that her legs were dangling off the side and she was facing her mom, "Now what?"

Her mom reached forward and picked her up off the table and started walked into the kitchen, "Now we put a candle into your pumpkin and set it on the porch. It'll look very nice at nighttime."

Skye nodded and held onto her mom as May opened up a couple of drawers before making a triumphant sound and pulling a few small candles and some matches out of one.

They made their way back into the dining room and her mom leaned down a little so that Skye could pick up her pumpkin. Her dad followed them both through the living room and out the front door. Her mom set her on the porch and Skye carefully set her pumpkin down on the top step on her porch, right by the railing. Her dad lit a candle and carefully placed it inside her pumpkin before putting the top back on it and Skye scrambled down the front steps so that she could get a better look at it.

Even though she didn't think it was possible, her pumpkin looked even cooler than it had before.

Her mom and dad both moved to stand beside her and her mom gently pushed her forward, "Go sit by it and we'll take a picture."

Skye grinned and ran up to her pumpkin. She sat beside it on the step and leaned towards it.

Her mom leaned into her dad and took her phone out, "Smile!"

Skye grinned happily and heard the shutter on her mom's phone go off.

She loved Halloween.

* * *

You guys, I _love_ carving pumpkins. Honestly, I love all things Halloween related but I _especially_ love carving pumpkins :) Let me know what you thought and don't forget to send in some fall/Halloween related prompts! I'll be writing them until the end of October and then I'll go back to taking prompts from the poll :) Also, for the one guest who sent in their votes for the poll, I just wanted to let you know that I saw the prompts you chose and I marked them down! Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	44. Skye Regrets Watching a Scary Movie

**Hey guys! This was inspired by inkblot29's prompt: "What about a moment where Nattie and Trip are watching a scary movie and Skye catches a bit of the worst part and now she's scared so she won't sleep because there are monsters and May and Phil have a "fun" time trying to get her to believe monsters aren't real." I loved this prompt so much! Thank you for sending it in!**

 **I just wanted to take a sec and say how much I appreciate all of you guys who take the time to read what I write. I really, really appreciate the people who take time out of their busy days to leave comments and reviews and I love all of you! Also, to that one guest who left that super lovely review, you seriously made me so happy! Thank you for your kind words and I've written down your prompt and added it to the poll :)**

 **Thanks so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own! xx**

* * *

Changing all of her dolls' clothes was hard work and Skye was thirsty so she was making her way downstairs to grab some apple juice from the fridge when she heard a shrill scream coming from the living room. It was super creepy and Skye paused before tiptoeing down the rest of the stairs and peering around the railing.

Nattie and Trip were sitting on the couch, watching a movie. The lights in the living room were off and the glow from the television was casting scary-looking shadows around the room. Skye heard another high-pitched scream and fixated on what her brother and sister were watching.

A woman was running through the forest at night. She had blood running down her forehead and she kept looking behind her so Skye knew that something was chasing her. The music that was playing changed and started to sound dark and scary and Skye could feel her heart rate pick up.

The girl on the tv started crying and this time when she looked behind her, her foot got caught on a branch and she fell to the ground. The woman scrambled backwards and Skye anxiously waited to see what was chasing after her.

Reaching out, Skye grabbed onto the railing and wrapped her hands tightly around it and leaned a little closer to the tv screen. The woman started crying harder and Skye watched as the camera showed the dark forest. The screen was black for a few seconds until suddenly, a pair of red eyes appeared and Skye flinched back when the music from the tv got louder.

Another pair of red eyes appeared, and then another, until there were about five pairs of eyes staring at the sobbing woman on the ground. Skye watched, transfixed, as five ugly creatures emerged from the forest.

Her grip on the staircase railing tightened until her fingers started to feel numb but Skye couldn't look away from the screen.

The monsters walking towards the poor lady were _terrifying_. They looked liked wolves but walked like humans. Their fur was scraggly, they had sharp teeth, were really tall, and had giant claws. She could see that some of them had blood on their snouts and on their claws and Skye told herself to look away but she _couldn't_.

Her breathing picked up as she watched the biggest creature stalk towards the woman and let out a scary, gut-twisting growl. She felt a shiver run down her spine.

The creature raised one of its dirty paws and looked like it was about to slash its claws across the woman's face. Skye braced herself for that to happen but before it could, she felt a hand on her arm and she couldn't help herself. She screamed. _Loudly_.

Jerking away from the hand resting on her arm, she spun around quickly and looked up and into the face of her concerned mother.

The creatures on the tv were so spooky and her mom had terrified her and Skye could feel her heart pounding against her ribs… She was so scared that she didn't know what to do, so she burst into tears.

Rushing towards her mom, she threw her arms around her mom's waist and buried her face against her tummy.

Skye felt her mom run a gentle hand down her back, heard the television shut off, and squinted a little when the light's suddenly turned on.

"What's wrong baby?"

Leaning back a little, Skye looked up at her mom and pointed towards the television, "Th-there are monsters!"

Her mom hugged her tight and made soothing sounds until Skye calmed down enough to stop crying. May ran her thumbs over Skye's cheeks and collected her tears, "It was just a movie sweetie, they aren't real."

Skye didn't say anything, she just held onto her mom until she heard footsteps coming down the staircase. Peering around her mom, she saw her dad heading towards them, looking concerned and a little alarmed. His hair was still damp from the shower he had been taking, "What's going on? I heard a scream."

Running towards her dad, she leapt at him and when he caught her, she hid her face against his neck and mumbled, "There are monsters and they're scary and I don't like them."

Her dad cradled her close, grabbed one of her hands from where it was wrapped tightly around his neck, and pressed a kiss to her palm, "Monsters aren't real sweetheart, you're okay."

She felt her dad walk down the rest of the stairs and looked up to see Natasha and Trip watching her from the couch with guilty looks on their faces.

Her mom came to stand beside her, put a hand on her hip, raised an eyebrow at Trip and Nattie, and said, "Explain."

Both her siblings shot up from the couch and started speaking at the same time. Skye couldn't understand what they were saying, they were both tripping over their words, and apparently neither could anyone else because her dad interrupted them, "One at a time, please."

Natasha and Trip both glanced at each other before Nattie took a deep breath and said, "Syfy is playing a bunch of scary movies because Halloween is in a couple days."

Trip nodded and spoke up, "Yeah, and we've been marathoning them and we were watching this one with werewolves-"

Natasha interrupted him, "We didn't know Skye was watching! If we knew, we would have changed the channel or something!"

Skye pressed herself closer to her dad and whimpered, "Werewolves are scary."

Thinking of the bloody teeth and sharp claws that were about to tear into the poor woman on tv, she whimpered again and felt her dad start to rub soothing circles on her back.

Her mom reached over and ran her fingers through her hair before looking back over to Natasha and Trip, "Why don't we try to be more careful next time? I don't want you scarring your little sister for life, okay?"

Her brother and sister both nodded hastily and her dad patted her back, "Skye, werewolves aren't real. You don't have to be afraid of them sweetheart."

They _looked_ real. They were big and scary and they were going to hurt that lady on the tv screen. Skye thought that it was perfectly reasonable to be afraid of them.

Her dad could tell that she didn't believe him because he looked over to Natasha, "Tasha, could you please tell your sister that she has nothing to be afraid of?"

Nattie walked over to her and her dad set her on the ground even though she didn't want to let go of him. Her sister leaned down a little and gave her a smile, "The movie was just make believe маленькая звезда. There are no werewolves."

Skye studied her sister and nodded slowly, "Okay."

Her sister tapped the tip of her nose, "Why don't we watch something a little lighter?"

Shuffling from foot to foot, she eagerly looked up at her sister, "Cupcake Wars?"

Nattie laughed a little and nodded, "We've recorded enough Cupcake Wars to watch it for the next three years. Let's go find a good one."

Skye took a step towards the couch but stopped when she noticed that instead of heading to the couch with her, her parents were making their way back upstairs. She reached a hand towards them, "Wait!"

Her mom and dad both looked back at her and Skye peered around the room, noting all the places a monster could hide if it wanted to. There was a dark shadow where the bookshelf connected to the wall and Skye inched away from it before sprinting over to her mom and wrapping her arms around her legs, "Will you watch it with me?"

Her mom rested a hand on the top of Skye's head, glanced at her dad, and nodded. Skye kept a firm grasp her mom's leg as all of them settled into the living room. Nattie and Trip each sat in a chair while her mom and dad sat down on the couch. Skye scrambled onto the couch after them, climbed onto her mom's lap, firmly wrapped May's arms around her waist, and looked around the room, as if daring the monsters to try and mess with her while she was safely nestled in her mom's arms.

Natasha glanced back at her before grabbing the remote and flicking through their DVR and finding a fun episode of Cupcake Wars.

Skye tried to focus on the pretty cupcakes and funny hosts on her tv screen but she couldn't. While everyone else was watching the different bakeries bake against each other, Skye was nervously glancing around the room and hoping that if there were any monsters there, they would stay away.

From where she was sitting on the couch, she could see out the sliding back door and into the backyard. The moon was bright enough that she could see the outline of her little playground but other than that, her backyard was completely bathed in darkness. What if there were monsters prowling around out there? It was so dark out that she wouldn't be able to see them and she unconsciously tightened her grip on her mom.

Her mom gently patted her knee in a comforting manner and Skye snuggled closer to May's chest.

* * *

Three episodes of Cupcake Wars later, Skye could barely keep her eyes open.

Her parents noticed and Skye heard Nattie and Trip tell her goodnight but she just mumbled out an incoherent response, let her mom pick her up, and rested her head on her mom's shoulder. She sleepily shut her eyes and it felt like seconds before her mom was setting her onto her bed and her dad was pulling her blankets up around her. Rolling over, she reached out for Alice and grabbed onto her doll before pulling it close to her chest. She felt her parents each press a kiss to her forehead and was about to close her eyes when she realized that her parents were about leave her alone when there were monsters on the loose.

Suddenly, she was wide awake.

When she bolted upright and stood on her bed with Alice dangling from her right hand, her parent's both looked surprised. They made their way back over to her and Skye glanced around her dark room. Even with the her nightlight and with the light from the hallway peeking through her open door, it was still too dark. There were so many places for monsters to hide.

She jumped off her bed, ran over to her light switch, flipped her lights back on, and sprinted back over to where her parents were now sitting on the edge of her bed. Her dad wasn't expecting her to crash into him, so he grunted when she jumped on top of him.

He patted her back, "What's wrong Skye?"

Looking around the room, she noted how her closet door was open an inch. Did she leave it like that?

"What if there are…" She paused to look around her room and lowered her voice, "Monsters in here?"

Her mom said, "There are no monsters baby, you have nothing to be afraid of."

"You don't know that!" Thinking of the dark space under her bed, she made sure that he feet weren't dangling over the side of her bed and pulled herself closer to her dad. There was more than enough space for something to be hiding under there.

When she looked up at them, her mom and dad were having one of their silent conversations that she could never interpret. Her dad moved her so that she was sitting on his lap rather than clinging to his neck and said, "Why don't we check your room then? That way you'll know that there aren't any monsters in here."

Skye nodded uncertainly. Her mom and dad were super brave and if there were any monsters in here, they would probably be able to fight them off but she didn't want them to get hurt.

Her dad tried to set her on the ground but she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. If there were monsters in here, she was sticking close to him. He just repositioned her in his arms and pressed a kiss to the side of her head.

They started by her nightstand and Skye watched as her mom thoroughly checked around it and then moved to look behind her door, "No monsters here."

Skye pointed to her desk, "Check over there."

She and her dad followed after and watched as May kneeled down and looked under Skye's desk and pulled out each of the drawers, "No monsters here either."

Skye just pointed over to the other side of her room and her mom obliged her.

Her mom checked around her dresser, her dollhouse, and under her beanbag chair. They were finally to her closet and Skye was really nervous for her mom too look in there. Her door was open an inch and if something was in there waiting for them, they wouldn't know it until it was too late.

She held a hand out just as her mom was about to open her closet door, "Be careful mommy!"

Her mom nodded seriously at her and opened up the closet. Skye held her breath as her mom poked her head into the closet and pushed clothes to the side so that she could check through all of it.

After a moment, her mom looked back at her and grinned, "No monsters here. See? You have nothing to be afraid of."

There was still one more place that a monster could be hiding, "What about under the bed?"

Standing up, her mom walked over to her and took her out of her dad's arms, "Why don't we look together?"

Her mom set her on the ground and Skye tightly gripped her hand. May walked over to her bed and Skye slowly trailed after her. Even though her light was on, it was still dark under her bed and Skye squinted to try to see under it but she couldn't.

Kneeling down, her mom prodded her until she was kneeling down next to her, her hand still wrapped tightly around her moms. May looked her in the eyes, "Ready?"

Skye shook her head. She didn't want to look under there.

Her mom pulled her phone out of her pocket, tapped it a few times, and suddenly a bright light was shining from it, "Here, this will help us see better." Her mom gave her an encouraging look, "You can do this Skye."

Handing her her phone, May lifted up Skye's sheets and peered under the bed. Skye took a deep breath, told herself to be brave, and followed suit.

She could feel her heart hammering against her ribs and she really just wanted to run away but then her mom squeezed her hand and Skye felt a little better.

Shining the light under the bed, Skye let out a breath of relief when she didn't see anything scary under there. There were some old toys lying under there and a shoe that Skye had thought she had lost, but other than that, there was nothing else.

Straightening up, she handed her mom her phone back and her dad grinned at her, "See? You're safe in here."

Skye nodded sheepishly, stood up, and climbed onto her bed, "Okay."

With smiles on their faces, her parents stood over her and tucked her in. Her mom brushed her bangs out of her eyes and kissed her forehead, "You're so brave Skye."

Blushing a little, she pulled Alice close to her chest and grinned.

Her dad nodded, "And now that you know there are no monsters in here, it's time to go to bed. Goodnight sweetheart."

Her parents made sure she was comfy, said goodnight, shut her lights off, and left her door open a little bit so that there was a stream of light from the hallway that kept her room partially lit.

Breathing out a sigh, she squirmed around until she was comfortably lying on her side and told herself that there were no monsters in here. If there had been monsters in here, her mom would have found them and scared them away.

Shutting her eyes, she repeated to herself that there were no monsters in her room until she felt her eyelids grow heavy. She was about to tumble into unconsciousness when a new thought occurred to her.

Just because there were no monsters in her room when her mom checked, didn't mean there weren't any in there _now_. They could have snuck in after her parents left and were now lurking around her room, staring at her with their creepy red eyes.

Skye's eyes flew open and she nervously looked around. Pulling her blankets up closer to her face, she tried to stare into the shadows of her room to see if there were any monsters hiding in them but it was too dark to tell.

She heard a creaking sound and quickly tugged her blankets over her head and pulled Alice close, "There are no monsters, there are no monsters, there are no monsters…"

There was another creaking sound and this time she forgot that she could be brave. Her blankets were thrown on the ground and she was out the door before she even realized what she was doing. Glancing back to her door to see if anything was chasing after her, she didn't notice that someone else was in the hallway until she crashed into them.

The impact jarred her and she was so startled and afraid that she screamed and tried to scramble away from the person she crashed into. She was trying to run off when a familiar pair of hands held her in place, "маленькая звезда! What's wrong?"

Skye threw her arms around her sister and tried to catch her breath, "I heard a noise and… and there are monsters in my room!"

Hearing a door open from down the hall, she turned and saw her mom and dad emerge from their room. Before they could say anything, she was running towards them and crashing into her dad's legs, "There was a monster in my room! I heard it!"

Her dad ran a hand over her hair and her mom said, "Skye, we already checked your room. There are no monsters, remember?"

Shaking her head, she said, "There weren't any monsters _then_ but there are monsters _now_."

"Sweetie-"

Nattie cut her mom off and said, "Skye, I know how to make sure that no monsters can get into your room."

Keeping an arm around around her dad's legs, she hopefully turned to her sister, "Really?"

Nattie nodded seriously, "Wait here."

Her sister disappeared into the bathroom and emerged a few moments later with a spray bottle in her hand. Nattie walked up to her and kneeled down, "This spray bottle is super important. Do you wanna know why?"

It was just a clear spray bottle with clear liquid in it. She didn't know why it was important so she nodded eagerly.

Natasha handed the bottle to her and she held it carefully in her arms, "It keeps monsters away. The monsters _hate_ it and when you spray it around your room, they won't come near it. This'll keep you safe while you sleep."

Skye marveled at the spray bottle in her hand, "Where did you get this stuff?"

Nattie stood up and held out a hand for her to take, which Skye did after reluctantly letting go of her dad's legs, "What do you think I used to keep the monsters out of _my_ room?"

Following her sister back into her room with their parents behind them, Skye held out the spray bottle and gave her sister an uncertain look. It felt weird to just be spraying monster repellent around her room. What if it stained?

Natasha nodded encouragingly so Skye started moving around her room, spraying _everything_. She sprayed her closet and around her bed the most because that was where she thought that the monsters were more likely to hide. Once she was satisfied that everything was sprayed properly, she made her way back over to her sister and held out the spray bottle for her to take back.

Her sister just shook her head, "You keep it. If you feel scared in the night, you can use it."

Skye set the spray bottle on her night stand so that she could easily reach it from her bed, turned back around, and gave her sister a tight hug, "Thanks Nattie."

Her sister just squeezed her tight before standing up, "No problem маленькая звезда, that's what I'm here for. G'night."

She watched Nattie walk out the door and turned to where her parents were watching her. Her mom spoke up, "You feel better now?"

With her room thoroughly coated in monster repellent, she felt much safer than before.

She nodded before climbing back onto her bed. Her mom leaned down to tuck her sheets back around her while her dad handed her Alice and said, "Okay so we checked and sprayed your room and there are no monsters. You're safe, comfy, have Alice to protect you, and it's time to shut your eyes and go to sleep."

Leaning down, her dad kissed her goodnight again and her mom did the same, "Goodnight Skye. Sleep tight."

Skye said goodnight and watched them leave her room again. This time when she rolled onto her side and snuggled into her pillows, she knew that there was nothing hiding in the shadows and she quickly let herself fall asleep.

* * *

Leave a review and let me know what you thought! I'll be continuing these Halloween/fall inspired prompts until the end of October (and I'll be writing more frequently in order to fit them all in) so if you have any prompts, send them in! If you have any prompts that aren't fall or Halloween related, send those in too (either on here or on my tumblr page) and I'll add them to the poll and write them out after October is over! Thank you so much for reading! I appreciate all of you guys so much and you're all lovely :) xx -Ariel


	45. Hunter Tells Skye Scary Stories

**Hey guys! This one-shot was inspired by a lovely guest's prompt: "Hunter is an idiot and accidentally tells Skye a ghost story that is way too scary for her. In retaliation Skye, Natasha and Bobbi play the best prank ever on him." So, since I'm terrible at ghost stories, I used some urban legends in this one-shot rather than ghost stories. I'm _also_ terrible at pranks so please forgive me! **

**I'll be doing these Halloween/fall one-shots until October is over and after that, I'll go back to pulling prompts from the poll. If you have a prompt for me, please send it in and don't forget to head over to my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye was mad at her brother.

Trip and Hunter were telling each other scary stories in the spirit of Halloween and every time she tried to listen in on them, they would quiet down so that she couldn't hear them. Trip said that they were too scary for her but she didn't believe him.

Huffing indignantly, she went back to pretending to color in the dining room when she was really trying to eavesdrop on their conversation. She wasn't having much luck.

After a little while, she heard Trip's phone ring. Her brother excused himself and walked out of the room.

This was her chance.

Walking into the living room, she smiled at Hunter, "Hi!"

He leaned back against the couch and waved at her, "Hey Princess. What've you been up to?"

Climbing onto the opposite side of the couch, she turned to face Hunter and leaned against the armrest, "Just coloring. Will you tell me a scary story?"

Hunter raised an eyebrow, "Trip doesn't want you listening to any creepy stories Skye, you're too little."

"Hey! I'm not little!" She was six, not a little baby.

Holding his hands up in a placating manner, Hunter shook his head, "No, of course you're not! Your brother said that, not me!"

Pouting out her lower lip, she pleaded with Hunter, "Please? Please, tell me a scary story. It's almost Halloween!"

Hunter studied her for a moment before releasing a big breath, "Okay, are you sure you can handle it?"

Pulling her legs under her, Skye leaned back on her haunches and nodded enthusiastically, "I can handle it!"

Hunter folded his arms across his chest, "Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you."

Skye huffed at his condescending tone. She would show him.

Hunter lowered his voice to make it sound more spooky and said, "A boy named Sam sat behind a girl named Jane in school every day. Jane always wore a pretty yellow ribbon around her neck. Sam never saw her without that yellow ribbon around her neck so he started asking her why she wore it all the time but she never told him. Whenever he asked her to take it off, she would always say no. One day, Jane got sick of Sam bothering her about taking her ribbon off so she slowly untied the ribbon and-" Hunter paused for dramatic effect and wiggled his fingers, "her head fell off!"

Skye blinked at him.

Hunter was waiting for her to say something so she reached over, gently patted his arm, and broke the bad news to him, "Hunter, you're bad at telling stories."

He looked offended, "I'm a great storyteller."

Skye knew great storytellers, her dad was a great storyteller, and Hunter was not one of them.

He must have seen the doubt and sympathy on her face because he turned so that he was facing her and got comfortable on the couch, "I was just going easy on you, here's a better one."

Deciding that she would give Hunter one last chance, she sighed and listened carefully.

"A long time ago, a town's local doctor and his wife had a child, a daughter named Mary-"

Skye interrupted him, "That used to be my name!"

Hunter looked surprised for a moment, "Oh yeah, it was, wasn't it?"

She nodded and waited for Hunter to continue with his story.

"Anyways, Mary lived a happy, healthy life with her parents until she was a teenager. When she was sixteen, Mary came down with Diphtheria."

Scrunching up her nose in confusion, she asked, "What's that?"

Hunter was silent for a few moments before waving her question off, "I dunno, I just know that it's very bad and back when Mary was alive, there was no cure for it."

Poor Mary, Skye thought.

"Mary didn't survive. The doctor declared that his only child was dead and overcome with grief, he told his wife that they needed to bury her right away. His wife thought that the doctor might have pronounced Mary dead too soon so when they buried her in a wooden coffin, they tied a string to her wrist. The string was threaded up through the ground and tied to a bell, which they hung on a hook by the grave."

Skye interrupted him again, "Why did they attach it to a bell?"

"So that if Mary was alive, she would wake up and ring the bell and her parents could dig up the grave."

Skye gulped at that thought. It would be really scary to wake up and be buried in a grave.

Hunter continued, "Mary's mother would not leave the grave. She wanted to make sure that if Mary woke up and rang the bell, she would be there to dig up the grave and get her out of there as soon as possible. Since it was very cold and rainy outside, the doctor was afraid that his wife would die of exposure if she didn't come inside but Mary's mom refused to leave her daughter's grave."

Biting her lip, Skye huddled into the couch cushions and focused solely on Hunter's story.

"The doctor knew that his wife would die before abandoning Mary's gravesite so he injected her with morphine and brought her into the house for her own safety. The next morning when the doctor visited Mary's grave, he noticed that the bell had been rung off the hook and was now lying on the ground."

Skye gasped, "Oh no!"

Hunter didn't stop talking, "The doctor immediately began to dig but he was too late. Mary was dead by the time he got to her. Like, really dead this time. Apparently, Mary had woken up in the night and had scratched and clawed at the top of the coffin in an effort to get out. Her hands were bloody and her nails were stuck in the wood of the coffin."

Skye shuddered and nervously glanced around the living room.

"They say that if you stand in the dark in front of a mirror and say "Bloody Mary" three times, you'll see her standing behind you, waiting to scare you to death!"

Hunter suddenly reached towards her and yelled "Boo!"

She couldn't help it, Skye screamed.

Trip walked back into the living room just then and gave her a concerned look, "What's wrong?"

She pointed at Hunter and Trip gave him an accusatory look, "What'd you do?"

Hunter looked sheepish, "I was just telling her about Bloody Mary."

Trip groaned, "Why would you tell her that?! She's never going to stand in front of a mirror again!"

"She said she could handle it!"

Trip threw his hands up, "She's six!"

Trying to sound brave, she spoke up, "I'm not scared!"

Trip gave her a doubtful look, "Why don't you go play with your dolls Skye? I bet they miss you."

Scrambling off of the couch, she ran to her room, making sure not to look into any reflective surfaces the whole way.

Hunter was just telling her a story, it wasn't real. Bloody Mary wasn't real.

She kept telling herself that over and over again as she walked into her room and grabbed Alice from her bed. As she was walking towards her dollhouse, she saw her reflection in her mirror and quickly looked away, not wanting to see Bloody Mary standing behind her.

She knew that Hunter's story was probably make believe and that Bloody Mary probably wasn't waiting in her mirror to scare her to death but she couldn't help the twinge of fear that rushed through her every time she saw a reflective surface.

Deciding that she didn't want to be alone, she quickly walked out of her room and towards her sister's. Natasha's door was partially open and when Skye entered her room, she saw that Nattie was leaning against her headboard while Bobbi was lying down with her head resting on Nattie's lap. They were both laughing about something and they didn't notice she was there until she was climbing onto her sister's bed.

Nattie's was still smiling when she said, "Hey Skye, what's-"

She cut her sister off, "Is Bloody Mary real?"

Bobbi sat up and leaned against the headboard next to Natasha, "Bloody Mary isn't real Skye. It's just a story that people tell kids to scare them."

Nattie agreed, "Yeah, where'd you hear about Bloody Mary?"

Wiggling her way in between the two older girls, she sat down between them and leaned into her sister's side, "Hunter."

Natasha looked over to Bobbi, "Your boyfriend's an idiot."

Bobbi raised an eyebrow, "You think I don't know that?"

Skye pulled Alice close to her chest and actively avoided looking towards the mirror that was hanging above Natasha's desk.

Nattie wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, "Skye, Bloody Mary isn't real. I promise."

Biting her lip, she looked up at her sister, "How do you know?"

"Because I've tried doing the whole "say her name three times in front of mirror in the dark" thing and nothing has ever happened. I promise, Bloody Mary isn't real. Hunter's just a big, dumb, idiot who likes to tell made-up stories."

Bobbi nodded and patted Skye's knee, "Tasha's right. When I was a kid, I heard that story at summer camp and all of my friends stood in front of the mirror and said her name three times and nothing happened. Bloody Mary isn't real."

Skye let out a deep breath and felt the fear that had taken root inside of her start to go away. She trusted Natasha more than anyone in the whole world and she knew Bobbi would never lie to her. If they told her that Bloody Mary wasn't real, she believed them.

Scrunching up her nose, she huffed, "He scared me."

Nattie rubbed her hand up and down Skye's arm comfortingly and it was quiet for a few moments until Bobbi smiled slowly, "I know how we can get Hunter back."

Skye grinned and listened to Bobbi's plan.

* * *

When Skye walked back into the living room, Trip and Hunter were sitting where she left them except now, they were watching tv.

Hunter caught sight of her and motioned for her to come towards him, "Listen Princess, I'm sorry if I scared you earlier. I didn't mean to. Bloody Mary is just a made-up urban legend that people have been telling for years."

Leaning against the couch, Skye scrunched up her forehead, "So you promise she isn't real?"

He held out his pinky, "I pinky promise."

Skye wrapped her pinky around his and grinned a little when he squeezed hers tight before letting go, "She isn't going to show up in my mirror to scare me to death, right?"

Trip sighed, "I told you she would be afraid of mirrors now."

Hunter ignored him, "No, she won't be in your mirror. Mary isn't real."

"Will you show me?"

Hunter looked confused, "What?"

Skye leaned on his legs and looked up at him, "Will you come and show me that she won't be in my mirror?"

Glancing back at Trip for a moment, Hunter raised an eyebrow and studied her, "Will that help you stop being afraid?"

Skye nodded and Hunter sighed, "Alright, let's go."

He stood up and turned to look at Trip, "You coming?"

Her brother shook his head, "Nah, I'm not gonna mess with evil spirits man. I'll wait down here."

Clutching Hunter's hand tighter, she exclaimed, "You said that it wasn't real! I don't want to mess with evil spirits either!"

Trip backtracked quickly, "I was kidding Skye! You won't mess with evil spirits, you'll be fine."

Skye wasn't sure she believed him but before she could think more about it, Hunter was tugging on her hand and they were making their way upstairs. Skye led him into the bathroom and took a deep breath to calm herself when he shut to door.

She had to force herself to look into the mirror, even though everyone kept saying Bloody Mary wasn't real, it was still hard to not be afraid. When she did look up, all she saw was her and Hunter's reflection look back at her. No one else was there.

Hunter gave her a look, "Ready?"

Nodding uncertainly, she held onto his hand as he shut the lights off. Everything was plunged into darkness and Skye was grateful that there was a small nightlight plugged into the wall. It wasn't bright but it allowed her to make out the shapes around the bathroom and she could see hers and Hunter's shadows.

Hunter squeezed her hand, "Alright, I'm going to say 'Bloody Mary' three times and nothing's going to happen. Watch."

Taking a step closer to him, she listened as he spoke, "Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary."

Skye held her breath and waited for something to happen.

Nothing did.

After a few seconds, Hunter laughed, "See? Everything's fine."

Just then, Skye heard a metallic scraping sound. Frantically looking around, she hung onto Hunter and nervously said, "What was that?"

"What was what?"

Skye heard the sound again and this time Hunter did too. He flicked the lights back on and Skye squinted at the sudden brightness.

Hunter glanced at her and slowly started walking towards where the sound was coming from, the shower, until he was standing right in front of it. He grabbed the shower curtain, took a deep breath, and quickly flung it to the side.

Bobbi and Natasha jumped out at him and made a loud noise and Skye giggled as Hunter let out a high-pitched scream.

The older girls busted out laughing and Skye walked over to them and gave them high-fives, "Did you hear how loud he screamed?"

Nattie was still laughing but Bobbi answered her, "Did I hear it? I think he busted my eardrums."

When she looked over to Hunter, he was bent over with his hands on his knees and he looked like he was trying to catch his breath. He threw a dirty look at them, "What the bloody hell was that for?"

Natasha slung an arm around Skye's shoulder and said, "That's what you get for scaring Skye with your dumb stories."

Hunter straightened up and pointed an accusing finger at them, "You scared the sh-" he glanced at her, "heck out of me!"

Bobbi walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "That was the plan babe."

Pouting, Hunter turned to her, "Are we even now?"

Skye grinned and nodded her head, "We're even now."

* * *

These Halloween prompts are super fun to write and I hope you guys are liking them! Let me know what you thought! xx -Ariel


	46. Skye Goes Costume Shopping For Halloween

**Hey guys! This was based off of SLYNNR's and KC1991's prompts and they both wanted to see Skye go costume shopping!**

 **So I've got some super exciting news! I'm going to be posting the first chapter of You Can Trust Me's sequel tonight so look out for that! It should be up within the next few hours. I'm so excited!**

 **I've got about three more Halloween/fall prompts to complete and once those are finished, I'll go back to pulling prompts from the poll, so don't forget to go vote for the one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye ran ahead of her family and into the Halloween store. She tried to make a beeline to where all the cool props were but she felt a hand on her arm and turned to look at her dad, "Why don't we find a costume first and then we can check out all the decorations, okay?"

Looking longingly towards the skeletons, bats, spiders, and severed heads, she let her dad lead her towards the kids section of the store.

There were costumes _everywhere_. There were princesses, superheroes, animals, characters from her favorite tv shows and movies, and mythical creatures. There was just too much to choose from.

Natasha plucked a costume from a rack and held it in front of her, "What about this Skye?"

Walking over to her sister, she grabbed the bumblebee costume from her hands and studied it before putting it back on the rack, "I don't like bees. It hurts when they sting you."

From the next aisle over, her mom held up an Elsa costume and Skye ran over to it. Taking it out of her mom's arms, she held it close to her chest, "I like this one."

Trip called her name and she looked over to see him holding up a Mario costume. He grinned at her and said, "You could dress up as your favorite video game character."

She took that outfit from his hands and held it with her Elsa costume. Everything here looked so cool, she wanted to wear _all_ of them.

Catching sight of a bright red and blue costume hanging a little ways away from her, she flocked to it and pulled it off the rack, "Supergirl!"

Adding the Supergirl costume to her steadily growing collection, she gave her mom a grateful look when she brought a cart over and set the costumes into it, "Why don't you put all the ones you like in here and you can try them on and see which one you like best?"

Skye nodded and started to reach for a witch costume when her mom spoke up, "Actually, chose your top ten and we'll try those ones, otherwise I think we'll be here all day."

How was she going to be able to chose ten of her favorite costumes when there were so many awesome ones to chose from?

* * *

"Are you ready to come out Skye?"

Making sure her cape was tied properly, she yelled back to her dad, "Yeah! Here I come!"

Pushing back the curtain to her changing room, she walked out and grinned at her waiting family, "Look at me!"

She posed in her Little Red Riding Hood costume and her grin grew wider as her family clapped.

Her mom spoke up, "I like this one Skye."

"Yeah! I can beat up a wolf!" She curled her fingers to look like claws and growled.

Her dad laughed, "Go try the next one on."

Walking back into her changing room, she took the Little Red Riding Hood costume off and put on her Supergirl costume. She made sure her gold belt was on right and ran out of the dressing room so that her cape trailed behind her. Holding her arms out in front of her so that it looked like she was flying, she zoomed around her family, weaving in between her siblings and circling around her mom, "Supergirl to the rescue!"

Her mom reached a hand out and caught her before she could run around her again, "Do you like this one?"

Skye nodded and put her fists on her hips and posed like Supergirl, "Yeah! Supergirl can do _anything_. She can stop a train!"

"Do you like it more than the last costume?"

Skye considered that. She liked Little Red Riding Hood but Supergirl was cooler, "Yeah."

Her mom turned her towards her dressing room and gave her a gentle push, "Okay, go try on the next one."

She obediently changed into her next costume and grinned at her reflection in the mirror as she straightened her long dress. Walking back to her family, she raised her bow and arrow and pretended to shoot it and said, "If you had a chance to change your fate, would you?"

Trip raised his eyebrows in confusion, "What're you supposed to be? Robin Hood?"

Stomping her foot indignantly, she put a hand on her hip and turned to her brother, "No! I'm Merida."

Her brother still looked confused so she continued talking, "She's a princess and she doesn't want to get married so she turns her mom into a bear!"

It didn't looked like she helped clear up any of Trip's confusion. If anything, he looked even more confused. Her brother turned to Natasha and said, "This is an actual movie? For kids?"

Her sister nodded and Trip didn't look like he believed her.

Her dad spoke up, "Do you like this one more than Supergirl?"

Scrunching her nose up, Skye let out a dramatic sigh, "I dunno, I like them both!"

"Go try on the next one."

Retreating back into the dressing room, Skye stared at herself in the mirror for a few seconds before changing. She liked her Merida dress.

It took her a little while to put her next costume on right and she excited the little room with a grin on her face. She ran out, growled, and reached towards her mom, "I want to suck your blood!"

Her vampire costume was a scary black and purple dress that went down to her feet, had long and flowy sleeves, and a tall collar.

Her mom laughed and Skye pouted, "Don't I look scary?"

Schooling her features so that her face looked sufficiently afraid, her mom nodded seriously, "You look very scary Skye."

Looking down at her dress, she made a face, "I think I like Merida and Supergirl better."

Natasha spoke up, "I liked the other two better too."

Skye nodded and went back to change. Her dad laughed when she came back out in a bunny costume. She hopped over to him and reached one hand up to hold onto her bunny ears so that they didn't fall off her head, "I like this one but I wanna be something cool and powerful! Bunnies aren't powerful, they're fluffy."

He dad put his hands on her shoulders and turned her around so she was facing the dressing room, "Then hop back in there and put on a cool and powerful costume."

She did as she was told and studied her remaining few costumes, looking for the best one. Her eyes roamed past the ladybug costume and the angel costume and stopped when she spotted the perfect one for her.

Tugging the dress on, she pulled her hair into pigtails and pulled on the gloves. She had recently taken to watching cartoons with Trip and she was dressed up as her favorite villain.

Pushing the curtain aside, she walked out to where her family was waiting for her and smiled at Trip, "Hi puddin'. Miss me?"

Her brother laughed and she twirled around so everyone could properly see her costume. Her red, white, and black tutu bounced up and down and she held onto her headband so it wouldn't fall off her head. Trying to get the accent right, she took a little bow and said, "Harley Quinn, pleased to meetcha!"

Trip pointed at her, "Now _that's_ the costume you should get."

Jumping up and down excitedly, she smiled brightly and said, "I want this one! I want this one!"

Her dad said, "You want to be a villain?"

Natasha came over and draped an arm around her shoulder, "Skye would make a great villain."

Beaming up at her sister, she wrapped an arm around Natasha's waist, "Thanks Nattie."

Turning back to her dad, she said, "Harley Quinn is _awesome_. She can flip around and beat up Batman but I think she should beat up the Joker instead cause he's a bad boyfriend _and_ a bad guy."

Her dad nodded and stood up, "If that's the one you want, let's get it."

Her mom ushered her back into the dressing room and Skye reluctantly took her costume off. She wished it was Halloween already so that she could wear it again.

* * *

Skye would be an _adorable_ Harley Quinn! I took my little cousin costume shopping the other day and she decided that she wanted to be Supergirl and she looked so cute in her little costume. Side-note: who watched the first episode of Supergirl on Monday? I was _amazing_.

Thank you so much for reading and let me know what you thought. And don't forget to keep an eye out for the sequel! xx -Ariel


	47. Skye Goes To A Halloween Party

**Hey guys! I combined charlotteredmond99's prompt (a halloween party with all the friends from school) and Marvel-Tolkien Fangirl's prompt (all the friend's go to their school's Halloween dance) to get this! I actually helped out at my elementary school's Halloween dance a few days ago so I kinda cheated and based this off of that. I've been trying to write this one-shot for the past few days and it's been _killing_ me for some reason. It's not the best but I hope you like it anyways :)**

 **I finished all the Halloween/fall themed prompts so I'll go back to pulling them from the poll from now on, so don't forget to go vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next! I just published the first chapter to You Can Trust Me's sequel, Trust Is a Two-Way Street, so these one-shots are going to be updated less frequently so that I can write that too. I'm sorry! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye only complained a little bit as Nattie carefully teased her hair and put it up into a high ponytail. Her sister finished with her hair and flicked it over her shoulder, "All done."

Turning around, she grinned up at Natasha, "Thank you!"

Her sister nodded and handed her her mask, "When're your friend's gonna be here?"

Fixing her mask so that it comfortably covered the top half of her face, she shrugged, "In a little bit. The dance starts soon."

Their school was having a super awesome Halloween dance for them and they were all supposed to dress up as superheroes. Skye had seen some of the decorations that the school staff had been carrying around at school today and she was very excited to go to the dance. She had never been to one.

Looking at her reflection, she studied her costume.

Natasha had tied her ponytail back and added a sparkly red ribbon to it. Her mask was blue and and had white wings on each side. She hadn't even had to go buy a costume, she already had a Captain America outfit on hand. That's what she was wearing now, along with her new red converse. Her shield had little straps attached to it and her sister helped her put her arms through them so the shield rested against her back like Cap's did when he wasn't using it.

Grinning, she struck a pose and put her hands on her hips. She looked _awesome_.

Her sister pulled out her phone and Skye's smile widened as Natasha leaned in and they both took a picture together.

Studying herself in the mirror again, she said, "I'm the best Captain America in the world."

Natasha raised an eyebrow, "Even better than the real one?"

She gave her sister an unimpressed look, "Captain America isn't real but if he was, I would _still_ be the best one."

Nattie laughed.

The doorbell rang and Skye squealed and ran out of the bathroom and down the stairs towards the door, "I got it! I got it!"

Her mom was heading towards the door but Skye skidded in front of her and reached the doorknob first. After unlocking it, she wrenched it open and grinned at her friends. Jemma and Fitz were both posing dramatically while Jemma's mom stood behind them with an amused look on her face.

Jemma's hair was curled and pinned to make it look shorter than it actually was. She was wearing a brown, fitted jacket over a white button up and a black tie. She had on a brown skirt and black shoes. She was even wearing a pretty red lipstick.

Skye giggled at Fitz's costume. It was red and yellow and bulky. His whole face was covered with a plastic Iron Man mask. The only part of Fitz that wasn't covered was the two tiny slits in his mask where his eyes were.

Her friends smiled brightly at her and Skye felt her mom stand behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. Her mom made a happy sound, "Oh, look at you two! We've got Iron Man and…"

Her mom trailed off as she tried to figure out who Jemma was supposed to be and her friend put a hand on her hip and frowned, "I'm Peggy Carter. She's the most important superhero of all time."

When Skye looked up at her mom, she saw that she was nodding seriously, "Of course you're Peggy Carter! You look great, you two."

Fitz mumbled, "I _told_ you Peggy Carter wasn't a superhero. Nobody even knows who she is!"

Skye took a step forward and crossed her arms, " _I_ know who she is and Peggy Carter _is_ a superhero."

Jemma grinned at her and Fitz huffed and relented.

Jemma's mom put one hand on Jemma's shoulder and one hand on Fitz's shoulder and said, "You two be good okay? I'll pick you up at the school at seven."

Her friends nodded and Jemma hugged her mom and said goodbye. Skye pulled them into her house and her mom smiled down at them, "You guys ready to go party?"

"Yes!"

* * *

When they pulled to the school, there were kids walking towards the building and saying goodbye to their parents. She spotted another kid dressed as Captain America and told herself that she was a better Captain America than him.

Skye could see Lincoln waiting in front of the front doors next to his mom. Skye grinned and pointed towards him, "Look! Lincoln's Thor!"

It was windy outside and Skye giggled as she watched Lincoln try to get his long red cape to stop twisting around behind him.

Her mom parked the car and Skye and her friends instantly reached for the door handles but May stopped them, "I know you're all excited but listen up kiddos."

She and Jemma sat back in their seats and Fitz shut the door that he had been able to partially open.

Her mom made sure they were all listening before saying, "Okay you three, stick together, be careful, and have fun. The dance ends at seven. I'll be here waiting for you Skye and I know your mom will be waiting here to pick you up Jemma. You too Leo."

They all nodded excitedly and went to get out of the car again but May stopped them again, "Please be careful, okay?"

"We will be mom."

Skye pushed open her door and stuck a foot out before her mom stopped her again, "Okay, but just-"

Sighing forcefully, Skye exclaimed, "Mom!"

Her mom waved her hands in front of her and nodded, "Right, sorry. Go have fun."

Giving her mom a smile, she hopped out of the car, grabbed onto Jemma's hand, made sure Fitz was following them, and ran over to Lincoln. Fitz was moving a little slower because he was having trouble seeing out of his mask so they slowed down so he could keep up.

Skye saw Lincoln's mom say something to him and he gave her a hug before meeting them halfway. His hammer was gripped tightly in his hand and his other hand was holding his cape up so he didn't trip over it but he was smiling brightly at them when they met in at the front door, "Hi guys!"

She waved at him, "Hi Lincoln! I like your costume."

His smile widened, "Thanks! I like yours guys' too! Jems, you're Peggy Carter, right?"

Jemma grinned and swatted Fitz's arm, "Thank you Lincoln! _See_ Fitz?"

Fitz grumbled, "Can we just go inside?"

Skye felt excitement wash through her. She had seen school dances on tv and they were always awesome. She was super excited to go to her first one.

Fitz opened to door for them and since her hand was still wrapped around Jemma's, she reached out with her other one to grab Lincoln's cape and dragged them both into the school. Right as they walked in, a third-grade teacher, Mrs. Franklin, smiled at them, "Hey kids!"

The all waved at her and Mrs. Franklin opened the door to the cafeteria for them, "Have fun!"

The usually boring and dull-looking cafeteria looked totally different and _awesome_.

All of the tables had been taken out of the large room and kids were dancing in the middle of the room. The lights were dimmed and orange fairy lights had been strung all around the room. There was a long table with food and drinks sitting on top of it along the right side of the room and Skye watched as a chaperone helped a kid fill a cup full of punch and another kid piled a bunch of candy onto his plate. On the left side of the room, there were a bunch of booths with games lining the wall.

Jemma squeezed her hand and raised her voice so that she could be heard over the music playing, "What should we do first?"

Lincoln pointed towards a booth, "Hey! I see Ms. Hill!"

Their teacher was standing behind a booth, smiling at a little girl dressed as Spiderman. Skye followed her friends towards Ms. Hill and their teacher smiled at them, "Hey guys! You having fun?"

Ms. Hil's booth looked fun. It was an arts and craft table where you could take a lollipop and wrap a tissue around it to make it into a ghost. Or You could decorate a tiny pumpkin or color a Halloween themed paper. There were five or six kids making ghosts and a couple were drawing faces onto their pumpkins and while Ms. Hill's table looked fun, Skye wanted some candy.

Jemma was talking to their teacher as Skye studied the other booths. There was one that looked like a photobooth. There were a bunch of accessories that you could use and then you could get your picture taken with your friends. That booth looked fun and Skye made a mental note to go visit it later.

Her eyes drifted past two other booths until they landed on one that had a bunch of candy. Skye pulled on Jemma's sleeve and they all politely said goodbye to their teacher before running over to the candy booth.

A teacher and two parent volunteers were standing behind the both and they all smiled at her. One of the adults handed her a small plastic bag and Skye didn't need to be told what to do. She stuck a hand in one of the candy buckets and grabbed a bunch of candy before shoving it into her bag. This bucket was full of mini-Reese's Pieces and she moved onto the next bucket and grabbed a handful Pixy Stix's. Grinning at the little tubes full of sugar, she tore one open and poured the flavored sugar into her mouth.

She grabbed a handful of lollipops and some Starbursts until her plastic bag was full and she joined her friends. Fitz was shoving gummy bears into his mouth, Jemma was nibbling on a bar of chocolate, and Lincoln was sucking on a lollipop. She smiled at them and hopped on her toes, "Let's go dance!"

She pulled her friends onto the dance floor and they all danced to the upbeat music. Well, she and Jemma danced. Fitz mainly just hopped up and down and Lincoln swayed from side to side. Either way, she was having fun.

She laughed as Fitz hopped up and down too quickly and his mask slipped off his face. He huffed and put it back into place and Skye's attention diverted from him and to Jemma, who was dancing circles around her.

Her cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so much when they heard their principal speak into the microphone and announce that anyone who wanted to compete in the dance competition should stay on the dance floor and anyone who didn't should clear the floor and watch.

Skye liked dancing but she knew she wasn't good enough to enter a competition. Luckily, Lincoln suggested that they go visit the photo booth instead.

They weaved through the group of kids standing around waiting around for the dance competition to start and made their way to the photobooth.

Fitz took his mask off and held a pink feather boa up, "Here Simmons, you should wear this."

Jemma gave him a look and pulled a plastic sword out of a bin, "You can wear it Fitz, I want this instead."

Fitz tried to steal the plastic sword from Jemma's hands but she swatted him with it and he backed off. Skye pulled a pair of giant sunglasses out of a bin and put them on over her mask while Lincoln put a crown on his head. They all walked over and stood in front of the green sheet that had been hung up and made silly faces as the photographer, the art teacher, took their picture.

They dropped the props back into the appropriate bins and stood around, trying to figure out what to do next. Lincoln fidgeted from foot to foot, "I want to go dance again."

Fitz laughed, "You weren't even dancing! You were just kinda standing there!"

Jemma elbowed him in the stomach, "Like you were any better."

Fitz looked indignant and Skye laughed before pulling her friends over to an empty corner of the cafeteria. The dance competition was still going on so the dance floor was occupied but Skye didn't really care, "We can dance here instead."

Lincoln looked around, "By ourselves?"

"Yeah. C'mon, it'll be fun!"

Her friends stared at her for a few moments before Jemma shrugged and started dancing. Skye grinned and joined her and after a few seconds, Lincoln and Fitz started doing their weird dance-shuffle thing.

They danced with each other until the lights suddenly turned on and the principal announced that the dance was over. Everyone groaned but while everyone started to file out of the room, Skye tugged her friends over to the candy booth, "Hurry! Grab a bunch before we have to go!"

They all filled their bags full of candy until they wouldn't carry anymore and then made their way out of the cafeteria and towards where their parents would be.

Shoving a handful of M&M's into her mouth, she spoke around the candy, "That was fun."

Fitz nodded and pulled his Iron Man mask off of his face so that he could bite down on some rock candy. Lincoln held his red cape in his hand so that no one would step on it and said, "Yeah."

Jemma stood on her tiptoes and pointed, "There's my mom! See you later guys! C'mon Fitz."

Jemma tugged Fitz away and she waved goodbye to them. Skye looked around and saw that her mom's car was parked in the same spot as she was when she dropped them off.

Smiling at Lincoln, she waved and said, "Bye! I'll see you later."

He waved back at her and turned around and made his way over to where his mom was waiting for him.

Skye skipped over to her car and pulled open the backdoor. When she looked up front, she saw that her mom was leaning against the window, sleeping.

Putting her bag of candy on the seat, she leaned forward and poked May on the cheek, "Mommy, wake up."

Her mom stirred and blinked at her before smiling, "Hey baby."

Skye studied her, "Did you stay here the whole time?"

Her mom gave her a guilty look, "I just wanted to make sure you were safe. Did you have fun?"

Rolling her eyes, she grabbed her bag of candy and offered some to her mom, "Yeah, it was really fun!"

* * *

Happy Halloween everyone! If you don't celebrate Halloween, then happy fall! I hope you all have a lovely and safe night!

Let me know what you thought and go check out the sequel to You Can Trust Me (if you want). Thank you so much for reading! xx -Ariel


	48. Skye And Natasha Get Into An Argument

**Hey guys! Sorry for the update delay! My roommate got me sick and I just now started feeling up to writing again! This was inspired by Purple T and cinti. linda's prompts: "Nat and Skye get into an argument."**

 **Don't forget to check out the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye stood outside Natasha's door and listened as she talked on her phone. She wasn't really supposed to spy on her sister but she couldn't help it if she happened to be walking by Natasha's partially open door as she was talking on the phone. Besides, it wasn't really _spying_ , she was just listening quietly without Natasha knowing. It wasn't her fault that Natasha was talking loud enough to be overheard.

Pressing closer to the door, she made sure she was quiet and listened closely.

"Shut up Bobbi! I do not!" Natasha sounded indignant and worried at the same time. Skye listened as her sister sighed deeply and pleaded with Bobbi, "Please don't tell anyone."

A secret! Skye _loved_ secrets. She anxiously waited for her sister to keep talking.

Nattie whined, "Come _on_ , it's not like I _purposefully_ started liking him... Stop laughing Bobbi!"

Her sister liked a boy! Skye wondered who it was. She crossed her fingers and hoped that it was Clint. She thought that Clint would be a good boyfriend for her sister.

"He's cute in an annoying yet endearing kind of way."

Natasha started talking softly and Skye had trouble hearing her and she _really_ wanted to find out who Natasha was talking about so she tried to get closer to the door. Everything was going fine until her foot accidentally tapped the door and it creaked open another inch.

There was no use in hoping that Natasha hadn't heard it. Her sister immediately stopped talking and before Skye could even think about running away, the bedroom door was wrenched open and Natasha was frowning down at her.

Pretending that she hadn't just been spying on her older sister, she smiled sweetly at her, "Oh, hi Nattie!"

Skye could faintly hear Bobbi's voice coming from the phone dangling by Natasha's side and tried not to fidget as her sister stared intensely at her, "Were you spying on me?"

Skye bit the inside of her cheek and grabbed onto her moon necklace. Her sister's eyes followed the movement and she immediately regretted the action when she realized that Natasha knew that she only did that when she was nervous or uncomfortable. Knowing that it was probably pointless to lie, she tried it anyways, "...No?"

Natasha looked angry and she watched as her sister brought her phone back to her ear and said, "I'll call you later Bobbi," before throwing her phone onto her bed, crossing her arms, and staring at Skye.

She could tell that Natasha was mad at her.

Skye knew that she should apologize but she couldn't get any words past the lump in her throat. Her silence seemed to make Natasha angier and finally her sister sharply said, "That was a private conversation Skye. You're always invading my privacy!"

Some of Skye's guilt was replaced with some defensiveness, "No I don't!"

Natasha threw her hands up and motioned at her, "Yes you do!"

Skye had to admit, the fact that she had been huddled by Nattie's door listening to her conversation didn't help her case but she didn't _always_ invade Natasha's privacy. Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Skye indignantly shook her head, "I do not!"

Natasha's voice grew louder, "Yes you do! You always try to listen to my phone conversations and read my texts! There are some things that I just want to be kept private from you!"

Skye stomped her foot, "So what? You like a boy! Why does that have to be private?"

Natasha's cheeks grew pink and she shook her head, "That's not the point! The point is that you never leave me alone!"

Her breath caught a little as Natasha's words pierced through her. She felt tears start to well up in her eyes and pushed them back. Determined to not let Nat see how much her words hurt her, she felt herself grow angry, "Fine! I'll leave you alone!"

Her sister laughed but it sounded bitter, "Yeah right, how long will that last? You always have to be in everyone's business! It's annoying!"

This time, she couldn't stop her tears from falling. She didn't know why Natasha was yelling at her like this but she didn't like it and she didn't have to stick around for it, "You're mean! I don't like you anymore!"

She didn't give Natasha a chance to answer, she just turned on her heel, ran into her room, and jumped onto her bed. Pulling the blankets completely over her, she pulled Alice towards her chest and cried.

Skye hadn't meant to make her sister angry and if she would've known that Natasha was going to be as upset as she had been, she would have just kept walking down the hallway. Sure, Skye liked to know what Natasha was doing and normally her sister didn't mind when she hung around her or talked with her friends but tonight she had been _mad._

Her sister thought she was annoying.

That thought alone made her start to cry harder.

A gentle knock on her door made her sobs stop but she didn't want to talk to anyone so she hoped that whoever it was went away.

She sniffled and kissed the top of Alice's head, ignoring how hot it was becoming under her blankets, and waited for the person to go away.

Her door creaked open and she heard Natasha softly say, "Skye?"

Even though it was getting uncomfortably warm under her sheets, she pulled them tighter around her and mumbled, "Go away."

Skye didn't want to talk to her.

It was quiet and Skye actually thought that Natasha had gone away until she felt the bed dip down beside her. It was silent for a few moments and Skye wiped the last of her tears off of her face and stubbornly waited for Natasha to say something first because she wasn't going to be the one to break the silence.

She felt Natasha place a hand on her shoulder and rather than leaning into it like she usually would have, Skye jerked away. She was angry and hurt and she didn't care if she was being _annoying_ right now.

Natasha let out a soft sigh, "Skye, I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said."

Skye indignantly jutted out her chin, rubbed Alice's hair between her fingers, and didn't say anything.

"Please Skye, sisters fight all the time. I'm sorry for what I said, you aren't annoying."

Natasha sounded so sincere and apologetic that Skye couldn't help but peek out from her blankets and blink up at her sister. Nattie gave her a tiny smile and lied down so that they were face to face. Her sister reached under the blankets and fished around until she found her hand and Skye didn't protest with Natasha intertwined their pinkies.

It was instinctual to squeeze Nattie's pinky with her own but she didn't look her in the eyes when she said, "I didn't mean to spy on you, I just… like knowing what you're doing because I want to be just like you."

Her sister made a soft sound, "Well now I feel even worse for saying what I did. I wasn't even mad at you, I was just embarrassed I guess."

Skye tilted her head, "'Cause you think a guy is cute?"

Natasha grinned and blushed, "Yeah."

Even though Skye really, _really_ wanted to ask who this guy was, she figured that Natasha would probably tell her when she was ready. Even though she had been offended that her sister had said that she was always spying on people… she had _kind of_ been right.

Skye bit her lip, "I'm sorry too. I'll try not to spy on you anymore."

She couldn't guarantee that she would never do it again but she would try not to. Either way, that seemed to be good enough for her sister because Nattie gave her a smile, "Thank you Skye."

Natasha reached forward with her other hand and pulled Skye into a hug, "So does that mean you like me again?"

Burying her head against Natasha's chest, she nodded, "Yeah, I still liked you even when I was mad though."

Her sister squeezed her tight, "We just had our first fight."

Skye huffed out a breath and leaned back a little so that she could see Nattie's face, "It wasn't fun."

"No it wasn't. But families fight and they forgive each other and then they move on. It's just what families do."

Natasha's utter faith that they would be able to get through any argument that they could ever possibly have made Skye feel warm and happy.

Skye pushed her face against Nat's chest again, breathed in her comforting scent, and mumbled, "And we're a family forever, right?"

Natasha ran her fingers through Skye's hair, just like her mom did, and it made Skye grin a little. She felt her sister press a kiss to the top of her head before saying, "Forever and ever."

* * *

What'd you guys think? I had this exact same fight with my little brother a few years ago so I sorta cheated here. Thank you so much for reading and an extra thank you so everyone who takes the time to leave a review! You're all beautiful daisies :) xx -Ariel


	49. Skye And Wanda Have Some Sister Time

**You guys, I am so sorry for the update delay. I was starting to get better but then I got a bacterial infection and the antibiotics that my doctor gave me made me so tired. And one of my best friends is going through a terrible time and I haven't had a free chance to write until today. I'm sorry guys! I'll update TiaTWS sometime this week, I promise.**

 **The lovely Layla wanted to see some interaction between Wanda and Skye so here you go! I hope you guys like it! Don't forget to go check out the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next. As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye waved goodbye to Jemma and Fitz and looked around for her mom. Her shoulders slumped when she didn't see May standing under the tree they always met at. It was unusual for her mom to not be there on time to pick her up from school but sometimes it happened.

Her eyes roamed over the parking lot and paused when she saw her dad's car pulling into a parking spot. Grinning, she pulled her backpack tighter against her and started making her way over to it. Figuring that her mom got stuck at work and her dad had come to get her, she was surprised when she saw Wanda hastily get out of the front seat.

She watched as her oldest sister looked around before spotting her. Wanda smiled brightly at her and Skye jogged the rest of the over to her, "What're you doing here?"

Realizing that her words might have sounded a little mean, she shook her head and backtracked, "I mean, where're mommy and daddy?"

Wanda took her backpack and carried it for her before leading her towards the backseat of the car, "They both have to work late today so it's just you and me for now, little monkey."

Skye let Wanda help her into her booster seat and said, "What about everyone else?"

Her sister finished strapping her in and gave her a smile, "Pietro and Trip are already on their way to the city for that concert they've been talking about and Nat has dance 'til six."

It was kind of weird for everyone to be gone, she was used to most of her family being home when she was home, but she was excited to get to spend some time with Wanda.

Wanda was still standing next to her, smiling, so Skye grinned back at her, "So it's just the two of us?"

"Yep, I was thinking that we could have a fun sister day. How does that sound?"

Skye's smile widened and she sat up a little straighter, "Yes! What're we doing?"

Wanda set her backpack onto the floor and reached forward to brush Skye's bangs out of her face, "I was thinking we could go to the bookstore and maybe grab a book, stop and get some ice cream, and watch a bunch of movies at home."

That sounded like the best plan ever. She told Wanda that and her sister laughed lightly and got into the driver's seat. She didn't have to ask her to play music, Wanda just connected her phone and started playing The Little Mermaid's soundtrack. They both sang loudly all the way to the bookstore and Skye impatiently waited for Wanda to help her out of her booster seat before hopping out of the car and eagerly stepping towards the bookstore.

Wanda's hand snaked out and grabbed hers and Skye let out a sound of protest at being restrained. She looked up and Wanda gave her a pointed look, "Mom and dad would be so mad if I lost you. We stick together, okay?"

Skye didn't want to get lost either, that would _not_ be fun, so she nodded and tried to calm down a little. Wanda must have sensed that she was eager to go into the bookstore though because she smiled at her and tugged on her hand. They quickly walked into the giant bookstore and both girls smiled widely. They both loved books. Wanda read them all the time and Skye liked being read to at night before bed and so they were always excited to get more reading material.

Knowing where the kids section was, she pulled Wanda towards the back of the store. Her sister laughed and let Skye drag her past rows and rows of books until they made it to the familiar children's' section. Before walking into one of the rows, she eagerly looked up at her sister, "How many can I get?"

Wanda pretended to look thoughtful and Skye wiggled around impatiently until her sister said, "Mom and dad get you two, right?"

She nodded.

Wanda led her down one of the aisles and whispered conspiratorially, "Why don't you pick out three?"

Skye's eyes widened excitedly and she jumped up and down before looking over to the books. Her eyes scanned over the brightly colored spines and she let go of Wanda's hand so that she could wander down the aisle. After a little while, she walked back over to where Wanda was sitting in the middle of an aisle, leaning against a bookshelf, with two books in her hand. One book was about space and one was a Magic School Bus book. She was having trouble trying to pick out her third book.

Plopping onto the ground next to her sister, she leaned heavily against Wanda's side and peered over at the book she was reading, "What's that?"

Wanda shifted a little so that she could pull Skye closer against her, "It's a Nancy Drew book. My mom used to read them to me."

Skye watched Wanda set the book down on her lap and knew that she wasn't talking about May, "Your mom?"

Skye thought that talking about her parents might make Wanda sad, sometimes it did, but instead Wanda had a tiny smile on her face, "Yeah, before bed, mom would read Nancy Drew to me and dad would read the Hardy Brothers to Pietro."

Skye intertwined her pinky with Wanda's, pushed her face against her sister's shoulder, and nuzzled against her, "You miss them a lot, don't you?"

Wanda nodded, "I miss them every day."

Gently pulling the book off of Wanda's lap, she cradled it close to her chest and glanced down at the cover. There was a pretty-looking illustration of a blonde girl shining a flashlight up a creepy looking staircase. It looked super interesting and Skye assumed that it was a mystery book.

Wanda was looking at the book but Skye could tell that she wasn't actually seeing it. She squeezed Wanda's pinky and her sister shook her head a little and focused on her. Skye held up the book and asked, "Will you read it to me?"

Her sister gave her a soft smile and leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead, "I'd love to."

Adding the book to her pile, she stood up and pulled Wanda up with her. Her sister easily followed after her and they kept their hands intertwined, "I love you Wanda."

Her sister's smile grew a little wider, "I love you too little monkey."

They both made their way towards the cash registers in comfortable silence, hand in hand.

* * *

She and Wanda stepped into their favorite ice cream shop and Skye took in the brightly colored walls and sweet smell of freshly made waffle cones. There was a family with three kids eating ice cream at the table by the window and the employee behind the counter was handing a mother and son their ice cream.

Skye and Wanda made their way to the counter and Skye tugged on her sleeve until her sister picked her up so she could peer into the ice cream display. She looked at all the ice cream flavors before gently tugging on Wanda's long hair, "What're you gonna get?"

Wanda pointed at a giant tub of ice cream, "Chocolate chip cookie dough. How about you?"

Skye considered her options and pressed her finger against the glass display, right next to Wanda's, "I want the same as you."

Wanda gave her a smile and looked up at the employee before saying, "Two cups of cookie dough please. One scoop."

The employee nodded and started scooping their ice cream for them and Skye tapped on Wanda's shoulder, "Should we get some for Nattie?"

Wanda shrugged and looked over at her, "She won't be home for about four hours."

Skye tapped out a rhythm on Wanda's shoulder, "We can put it in the freezer for her."

Wanda patted her thigh gently and grinned, "You're a good sister, little monkey."

Skye just smiled and pointed towards a tub of ice cream at the end of the display, "She likes the Reese's Pieces ice cream."

* * *

Wanda threw a pillow at her and Skye caught it and giggled. She ducked and crawled into the blanket fort that she and Wanda had made in the living room. Wanda followed closely after her after shutting the lights off.

They lied down on their bellies next to each other and Skye reached forward to pull the blanket that was hanging open shut so that they were completely enclosed in their fort. Wanda put a DVD into her laptop and threw a fluffy blanket over both of them. Skye snuggled into Wanda's side and watched the opening credits of Finding Nemo start playing.

She pulled Alice and Mara close to her chest and looked over to her sister, "Wanda?"

"Yeah?"

"I like it when we hang out like this."

Wanda bumped her with her shoulder and grinned, "I like hanging out with you too."

Skye smiled back at her, "Can we have sister days more often?"

Wanda wrapped an arm around her and tugged her close, "I think we can make that happen."

* * *

A voice woke Skye up, "Well, doesn't this look cozy."

Skye blinked blearily and sat up. Wanda was doing the same. The last thing she remembered was watching the middle of Matilda but the fort had been so warm and she was so comfortable that she must have fallen asleep and apparently Wanda had too.

Someone wiggled their way in between her and Wanda and Skye caught a flash of red hair before Nattie pretended to lie on top of her. Skye pushed at her and Natasha laughed before rolling off of her and lying between her and Wanda, "Nice fort."

Skye smiled proudly, "Thank you.

Natasha reached over and softly pinched her cheeks and Skye swatted her hand away before Nattie laughed and snuggled close to Wanda. Wanda tickled Natasha's sides, "Be nice to Skye, she got you ice cream."

Natasha sat up and pressed a kiss to the top of Skye's head, "маленькая звезда, I knew there was a reason you're my favorite."

Wanda made an indignant sound and flicked Nat's arm "Hey."

Natasha held up her hands, "You're my favorite too."

Skye spoke up, "You're both my favorites sisters."

Wanda and Natasha both turned to her and Wanda said, "We're your only sisters."

Skye grinned, "So? You guys are still my favorite."

Wanda grinned, "I guess you two are alright."

She and Natasha both glanced at each other before slowly stalking towards their older sister, "You know what Skye?"

"What Nattie?"

Natasha wiggled her fingers in front of her and smiled slyly, "I think Wanda wants to be tickled."

Wanda held up her hands, "Don't even think about it."

Nattie lunged forward and pinned Wanda's arms against her chest and Skye started tickling her sides and above her hips. Wanda started laughing and tried to squirm away, "Okay! Okay, you're both great! Stop please!"

She and Nattie backed off and let Wanda catch her breath before their oldest sister said, "I love you both even though you're crazy."

Natasha grabbed onto each of their hands and tugged them towards the door to their fort, "Come on, I'll share my ice cream with you guys."

Skye happily let Nattie pull her and Wanda out of their fort and into the kitchen.

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Again, I am so sorry for the delay! It's been a rough few weeks. I really hope you liked it! Thanks for reading! xx -Ariel


	50. Natasha Has A Nightmare

**Hey guys! Quick heads up that I won't be updating any of my stories until after my exams are over, which is around December 11th. Once I'm done with them, I'll be writing much more frequently and consistently, I promise! Sorry guys but exams have already taken over my life!**

 **This prompt was so much fun to write and I loved it so thank you to the lovely guest who sent it in. The prompt is: "Natasha has a nightmare or flashback or something about her past, wakes up the whole house screaming, but only Skye can get her to talk about it."**

 **Thank you so much for reading and don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next. As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye was jerked out of her dreams by rough, desperate, screams. At first she thought they were her own, that she had been having a nightmare she wasn't able to remember, but then she heard them again. She then heard two pairs of feet running down the hallway and assumed that those belonged to her parents.

The screams were gut wrenching and too high-pitched to be Trip's.

Yanking her blankets off of her, she pulled Alice close to her chest before running out of her room. She squinted as she entered the hallway, the brightness hurting her eyes, but she made her way towards the screams. The screaming stopped and the desperate sobs that took their place weren't any better.

Trip was standing outside Natasha's door. He must have heard her coming because he turned around and gave her a worried look. She jogged the last few steps towards him and tucked herself into his side, "What's going on?"

Her brother pulled her close and ran a hand over her head, "Nightmare. She hasn't had one this bad in a long time."

Skye swallowed thickly, the sound of her sister crying making tears of her own well up in her eyes, and peered into Natasha's room.

Her sister was on the floor with her arms wrapped around her legs. She was sitting in the tiny space between her bed and the bedside table, looking wildly around the room and trying to catch her breath. Her eyes weren't really focusing on anything, not even on her parents, who were crouched a few feet in front of her with their hands held out, like they were trying to placate a wild animal.

Skye instinctively took a step towards Natasha, she wanted to help, wanted to do anything to get that look out of her sister's eyes, but Trip held her back. She looked up at him and he shook his head once. She didn't know why he wouldn't let her go into the room but she listened to him.

She was afraid. She had never seen Natasha like this. Her sister was almost always in control, her sister _always_ knew what to do or how to act, and Skye wished she could ask Natasha what she should be doing to help but she couldn't because Natasha was the one who needed help right now.

Trip let go of her and they both watched the scene unfold before them.

Her mom's voice was soft and extra soothing when she said, "It's okay Natasha, you're alright sweetie."

Her dad parroted her, "You're safe, it's okay."

Her parents kept saying soothing, gentle words until Natasha's tears subsided. Her sister's eyes seemed to be a little more focused but her arms were still wrapped tightly around her legs, like she was trying to make herself as small as possible.

It was quiet for a few moments, the silence was thick Skye could still hear the echo of Natasha's sobs ringing in her ears. Her mom broke the silence, "Good girl, you're safe now."

Nattie looked around uncertainly, like she thought that she might still be dreaming. Her mom tried to take a step forward but stopped when Natasha pressed herself closer to the wall.

It hurt to watch but Skye couldn't look away. She wanted to help but she didn't know what to do. It didn't even look like her parents were helping that much.

Her mom glanced at her dad and they both shared a look before her dad stepped back, "I'll grab you a glass of water, okay sweetie?"

Nattie didn't say anything and her dad gave her a worried look before turning and walking towards her and Trip. He gave them a tiny smile that looked forced and reached down to affectionately caress her cheek before he walked out of the room. Her mom started humming a lullaby that Skye didn't recognize and they all sat there, waiting for Natasha to say something or relax a little, but nothing happened.

Her sister was still curled in on herself, sitting in a too-small space, staring at nothing. Skye felt her heart ache and unconsciously rubbed Alice's hair between her fingers when something occurred to her.

Alice used to be Natasha's doll, her sister had told her how much the doll had helped her when she had first moved in with her family… maybe it would help her now.

Quickly, she moved into the room so that Trip couldn't stop her. She slowed down as she approached Nattie and glanced at her mom. May studied her but didn't stop her so when she got a foot away from Natasha, she stopped and knelt down in front of her. Her sister looked at her but Skye could tell that she wasn't really seeing her, that she was focusing on what was going on inside her head rather than her. She needed Natasha to see that everything was alright, that her nightmare wasn't real and couldn't hurt her anymore.

Slowly, she pried one of Nattie's hands off of her leg and pushed Alice into it. She wrapped her own hand around her sister's and the doll, just in case Natasha was going to drop Alice, but that didn't matter. She felt Nattie's fingers tightly clench around the doll and it took a few seconds but Skye watched as Natasha finally focused on her.

Her sister glanced at the doll for a moment before looking back at her with red-rimmed eyes and brokenly whispered, "Skye?"

Skye nodded and didn't let go of Alice when Natasha pulled the doll to her chest, "It's me, I'm right here."

Nattie nodded back at her and Skye felt relief wash through her when the panic in her sister's eyes faded completely. Natasha's eyes welled up with a new wave of tears and Skye braced herself for the heart-wrenching sobs that she had heard earlier but they never came, instead, her sister tugged her forward and Skye fell into her. Natasha squeezed her so tightly that it was sort of hard to breathe but Skye didn't try to pull away or ask her to let go, she hugged her back just as tightly. She rubbed circles onto Nattie's back, that always helped her calm down when she was upset, and pressed kisses to the side of her sister's head until Nattie loosened her grip enough for Skye to lean back but not let go.

She glanced up at her mom and saw that her dad had made his way back into the room without her noticing and both of them were watching. Skye kept rubbing circles onto Nattie's back and felt her sister bury her head against her chest and she felt helpless. She wished that she could be doing more to make Natasha feel better but she wasn't sure what to do so she settled on pressing one more kiss to Nattie's head and then wiped the remaining tears off of her face.

The sound of her mom's gentle voice had her and Natasha looking up at her, "You wanna talk about it?"

Nattie firmly shook her head and it looked like she might revert back into herself like before so Skye squeezed her hand around Nattie's and the doll's and it seemed to keep her sister grounded.

Her mom didn't press the issue and her dad spoke up, "Why don't you two get off the floor. It can't be very comfortable."

Skye let go of Natasha's hand and softly tapped her shoulder, "C'mon Nattie, we're getting up now."

Her sister let her tug her until both of them were standing and it kind of worried Skye how automatic and robotic Nattie's movements were but she managed to get both of them onto the bed. She pushed on Natasha's shoulders until her sister finally lied down and then Skye curled up next to her and pulled the blankets over them. Nattie rolled onto her side and pulled Skye impossibly closer but she didn't mind, she just rested her head on Natasha's chest.

Glancing sideways, she could see her parents looking down at them and smiled a little when her mom and dad leaned down to press a kiss to the top of hers and Natasha's heads.

"Are you alright? We can stay in here until you fall back asleep if you want."

Skye waited for Natasha to answer their mom but her sister didn't say anything so she did, "We're alright mommy."

"You sure?"

Skye could tell that her mom was waiting for Natasha to answer, to make sure that she really was alright, but her sister remained silent so Skye answered for her again, "I'm sure."

She snuggled closer to Nattie and heard the rustling of sheets and the quiet murmur of her parent's voices as they spoke to Natasha and then it was silent. The lights shut off and Nattie's grip on her got impossibly tighter so Skye called out, "Turn the lights back on please."

The lights flickered back on and a glance towards the door revealed that her parents had left it open wide. Skye's attention was brought back to Natasha when her sister let out a long, broken sigh. She wrapped one arm firmly around her sister's back and stroked Nattie's hair with her other hand, trying to be comforting. She was trying to do what Nattie did whenever Skye had a nightmare and went to her for comfort. She hoped she was getting it right.

Natasha clung to her and Skye started whispering gentle words, "It's okay Nattie, you're safe with me."

She kept whispering soothing and soft words over and over again until she felt Nattie start to relax. Her sister's breathing started to even out and Skye hoped that she was starting to fall back asleep. Stretching up, she pressed a kiss to her sister's cheek before whispering, "You can go to sleep Nattie, I'll protect you."

Skye settled back down and snuggled close to her sister. She kept her arms protectively wrapped around Natasha until she heard her sister's breathing even out and she was completely relaxed before Skye shut her eyes and fell back asleep.

* * *

When Skye opened her eyes, she blinked at the harsh lights of Natasha's room and slowly stretched out, being careful not to jostle her sister. When she rolled over and looked glanced at Natasha, she realized she hadn't needed to be careful because Nattie was already awake and staring at her. Skye gave her a bright smile and slowly reached forward and brushed Nattie's red hair away from her eyes, making sure her sister had enough time to stop her if she wanted to.

Natasha leaned into her touch and Skye stretched up so that she could press a kiss to her sister's cheek before sitting up. Nattie sat up with her and Skye studied her.

Her sister looked tired, like she hadn't gotten any sleep at all, and her eyes were a little puffy and looked haunted. Nattie didn't say anything and it was sort of unnerving but Skye knew how hard it could be to find the right words so she didn't mind.

They sat in companionable silence for a little while before Skye's tummy growled and she gave Natasha a sheepish look, "Let's go eat."

Nattie stared at her, like she was trying to understand the words, before nodding slightly.

Throwing the blankets off of them, Skye stood up, stretched, and reached back to intertwine her pinky with Natasha's. She tugged on her sister's hand until Nattie was standing beside her and then gently led her out of the room and downstairs.

It was worrying Skye how robotic Natasha's actions were, how she was just letting herself be led around without talking, but she didn't say anything about. She didn't want to make Nattie feel bad, she never wanted her sister to feel bad ever again, so she was going to try and make everything better.

Their dad was almost finished making breakfast and surprisingly, their mom was already downstairs with him. Her parents must have heard them coming down the stairs because both of them turned to greet them as she and Natasha walked into the kitchen.

May met them halfway and pulled Natasha into a hug. Skye was sort of in the way, she was partially squashed between her mom and her sister, but when she tried to move away, Nattie's grip on her pinky tightened so she stayed where she was. After a long moment, her mom loosened her grip on Natasha and leaned back a little, "Whenever you're ready to talk, we're here to listen, okay?"

Skye piped up, "Me too."

Nattie gave them a grateful look but stayed silent. Her dad walked up to them and pressed a kiss to Natasha's forehead before reaching down and ruffling Skye's hair. She grinned a little and pushed his hand away before tugging on Nattie's pinky, "C'mon, I'm hungry."

She pulled Natasha into the dining room and pushed her until she was sitting in a chair. Skye then dragged her chair as close to Natasha's as possible before plopping down. Their parents brought the food to the table and Skye automatically reached for a chocolate chip pancake and some strawberries. She was pouring syrup all over her pancake when she realized that Natasha hadn't moved.

Moving around in her seat so that she was kneeling on her chair, she reached for Natasha's plate and put a bunch of fruit on it before grabbing a piece of toast. It was kind of hard to get the strawberry jam all over the piece of toast, she got a little bit on the table too but she pretended not to notice, but she finally did and set the toast on Nattie's plate and pushed it in front of her.

Her sister stared at it for a little while before Skye pushed it even closer to her and said, "Eat." It was more like an order rather than a suggestion but it seemed to work because Nattie slowly reached for a grape and carefully ate it.

Happy that her sister was eating, Skye dug into her chocolate chip pancake.

Breakfast was a silent affair, with only Skye and her parents exchanging a few words, but Skye didn't mind. She just ate her food and occasionally pushed a piece of fruit towards Natasha until she ate it.

Once everyone was done and Skye determined that her sister had eaten enough, she pulled Nattie into the living room and guided her until they were both sitting on the couch. She grabbed a blanket from where it was hanging over the back of the couch and draped it over the both of them before picking up the remote, perusing through the DVR, and clicking on an episode of Cupcake Wars.

She set the remote back down, wiggled around until she was comfortable, grabbed Natasha's hand and held it on her lap, and watched the show. She didn't want to pressure Nattie into talking, she would do it when she was ready, she just wanted her sister to know that she was here for her.

They made it through four episodes before Natasha finally spoke.

Skye was in the middle of laughing at what one of the baker's had said when she heard Nattie clear her throat.

She didn't pause the show but she did look over to her sister and waited for her to say something.

Natasha glanced from the tv screen to her a couple of times before letting out a big breath and focusing on her, "The people I used to live with… they were bad."

Skye squeezed Nattie's hand and waited for her to continue.

Her sister nibbled on her lower lip for a second or two before saying, "Sometimes it was easier to just hide. If they couldn't find me, then nothing bad could happen. But one time I hid in the back of a bathroom closet and someone found me."

Nattie paused and blinked rapidly before going on, "They found me and locked me in there for… for I don't even know how long."

Her sister stopped talking and Skye scooted closer. She leaned her head against Nattie's shoulder and said, "I'm sorry Nattie."

Natasha shook her head, "It's not your fault. I just haven't had a nightmare like that in a long time. It was like I was back there."

Sitting up so she could look at her sister's face, she looked up at her earnestly, "It's okay now. You're safe and I won't let anything happen to you ever again."

Her sister gave her a half-smile, the first one since last night, "Thanks Skye."

She let go of Nattie's hand so that she could put her hands on each of her sister's cheeks, "I mean it, I'll keep you safe."

Natasha started at her for a minute before pulling her into a tight hug. Skye leaned into the embrace and felt her sister rest her chin on Skye's shoulder, "Right back at you маленькая звезда."

* * *

What'd you guys think? I really liked writing this chapter out even though it was kind of dark. Good luck to everyone who'd going through exams right now! xx -Ariel


	51. Skye vs A Storm

**Hey guys! I survived finals weeks! Thank you for being patient with me and I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season :) I'm surrounded by my family right now and I'm so happy!**

 **This prompt was sent in my Lynx Wilde and inkblot29 and they both wanted to see how Skye would deal with storms. I hope you all like it and I'll be updating Trust is a Two-Way Street as soon as I can! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

The lady on the news had told them that the hurricane was going to go around them so Skye hadn't been worried. She felt bad for the people the hurricane was going to hit, she bet that it would be scary to go through a storm like that, but once she found out that it wouldn't impact her, she had gone back to playing with her dolls and ignored the smiling news lady.

That had been two days ago but now the hurricane had changed its course and was heading towards them. She was scurrying after her parents as they got everything ready.

Her mom was gathering all of their candles and matches from the kitchen drawers while her dad moved into the garage to bring in a package of bottled water. She had been following them around all day but since she couldn't follow the both of them, she glanced at her dad before letting him walk towards the garage and grabbing onto her moms leg, "Are they sure the hurricane's coming this way? They were wrong before."

Her mom gave her a reassuring look and continued to search through the drawers, "I think they're pretty sure. See how windy it is outside?"

She looked towards the backyard and grimaced. The wind was whipping through the trees and leaves and small branches were flying everywhere. She watched as a page from the newspaper rushed by and got caught on one of the swings on her playground.

Tapping her mom's thigh, she said, "Is my playground going to be okay?"

Her mom stopped what she was doing to run a comforting hand through Skye's hair, "It'll be fine baby. This hurricane isn't that big and our backyard has been through worse. Everything's okay."

Her mom's words reassured her a little bit and nodded, "Alright."

May smiled at her and handed her some candles, "Will you put some of these in the living room and bring some to Trip and Tasha?"

Even though she really didn't want to be by herself, she nodded and took the candles from her mom before running out of the kitchen and into the living room. She scattered a couple of candles around the room before heading upstairs.

She pushed into Trip's room first. He was listening to music so he didn't notice her until she was standing right in front of him. He gave her a grin and pulled his headphones out of his ears, "Hey Skye."

She gave him a small, forced smile and offered him some candles. He took some from her and set them down before focusing back on her, "You okay?"

Biting the inside of her cheek, she fidgeted from side to side and tried not to look nervous, "Yeah, I'm okay."

Trip looked like he didn't believe her, "You don't have to be worried. The hurricane is pretty much just like any other rainstorm, just a little windier. It'll be alright."

She stopped biting her cheek and said, "Promise?"

He nodded, smiled at her, and offered her his pinky, "I pinky promise."

She gave him a real smile this time and wrapped her pinky around his, "Okay. Thanks Trip."

"No problem girl, that's what I'm here for."

She gave him one last smile before turning around and heading towards her sister's room.

Natasha's door was partially open so Skye didn't bother knocking, she just walked into the room. Nattie didn't seem to mind, she was lying on her stomach and reading a magazine and smiled when she spotted her.

Her sister sat up and Skye set the remaining candles down on the bedside table before jumping onto the bed next to Natasha. She bounced up and down once or twice before settling down and leaning into Nattie's side, "I brought you some candles."

She felt Natasha run her fingers through her hair and leaned into the touch, "Thanks. I hope we don't need them though. I hate when the power goes out."

Skye wasn't a huge fan of the power going pit either but she didn't say anything about it. Instead, she shifted a little so that she was resting her head on her sister's lap and was looking up at her, "Trip and mommy said that I shouldn't be worried about the hurricane but I still am."

Nattie reached down and rested a hand on top of Skye's head, "It's okay to be a little worried but everything will be okay."

"That's what everyone keeps saying."

Her sister smiled down at her, "Then you should listen to them."

Storms were pretty scary. Before Skye lived with her family, she used to hide under the bed during rainstorms because she didn't like how loud they were. Now, her family would play loud music or turn the volume on the t.v. up to drown out the noise and she would cuddle with either her mom or her dad. She was still a little afraid of storms but it wasn't _too_ bad when she was with her family. This was different though. She knew that hurricanes were worse than regular storms and couldn't help but feel nervous.

She cuddled closer to her sister, "I've never dealt with a hurricane before."

"I have and it's not that bad. There's just a lot of flooding, wind, and branches on the ground."

She told herself to believe her family and that they had never lied to her before so they wouldn't be lying about this. They kept saying that everything would be alright so she tried to believe them.

* * *

When the hurricane had hit, it had honestly been a little anticlimactic. The rain just got heavier and the wind got louder.

She had been watching Cupcake Wars with Natasha and Trip and hadn't even realized that the hurricane was on top of them. The power stayed on and since all the curtains were closed, she had just kept watching t.v.

Everything had been fine until Skye heard a loud crack coming from the backyard. The loud noise made her jump in surprise and she shrunk back into the couch cushions, "What was that?"

"Don't worry about it little monkey, it was probably nothing." Nattie tried to wrap an arm around her but Skye moved out of reach and hopped off of the couch. Before anyone could stop her, she walked over to the backdoor, pushed the curtain aside, and peered out.

Sitting in the middle of her backyard was a big, broken branch. It must have broken off of one of the tall trees back there but the branch was pretty big. It was taller than her dad and wide.

The branch scared her. If the storm was strong enough to break a branch that big, was her house going to be okay? What if another branch broke off and fell on top of them?

Backing away from the door, she hurriedly made her way back onto the couch and tucked herself into Natasha's side, "I don't like the hurricane."

Nattie gently patted her thigh and pointed to the t.v. screen, "Look, they're making cupcakes with bacon in them. Gross, huh?"

Trip spoke up, "I dunno, I'd try it."

Natasha scrunched up her nose in disgust, "Ew Trip."

Skye knew that they were trying to distract her and she let them. She pushed the scary storm to the back of her mind and watched the show with her siblings.

That lasted for about forty-five more minutes until suddenly, the power went out.

The room went dark, the fans stopped working, and the smiling bakers from her show disappeared. Without the noise from the t.v., Skye could clearly hear the wind howling around them and the loud sound of rain pelting against the side of her house. She couldn't help it, she was afraid, "Mommy! Daddy!"

Natasha was trying to comfort her, she was saying soothing things and was running a gently hand through Skye's hair, but as soon as she saw her parents come down the staircase, she jumped up and ran over to them.

Her dad wasn't expecting her to crash into him like she did so he grunted and faltered for a second before wrapping an arm around her in a tight hug. She looked up and rested her chin on his tummy before anxiously saying, "I don't like this storm. What if a branch falls on us? What if the wind breaks the house? Mommy said my playground will be okay but I don't know if it will be, like what if-"

Her dad cut her off, "We'll be fine sweetheart, you're worrying too much. Your mommy and I are the ones who are supposed to worry, not you."

She couldn't help it, storms made her nervous, "What if everything isn't fine?"

Her mom reached over and gently tugged her towards the living room, "Everything _is_ fine baby, now, let's play a game."

Skye let her mom pull her back into the living room but shook her head. Didn't they know that they were in the middle of a hurricane? "But-"

Her mom cut her off, "We've got Uno, Candyland, and Chutes and Ladders. What should we play?"

Natasha slid off the couch and onto the floor, "Uno!"

Trip, who had managed to light all the candles in the living room, followed after her, "Yeah, let's play Uno. It's the only game I ever win at."

Natasha gave him a competitive look, "Don't hold your breath, I'm about to destroy you."

Skye couldn't help but grin a little. Playing games with her family was always fun. Everyone was so competitive that it was hard not to get absorbed into the game. She sat down on the floor and her parents sat on either side of her. She looked towards her siblings and smiled, "I'm about to beat both of you."

Nattie laughed and Trip leaned towards her, "Bring it on."

* * *

They played three games of Uno and Skye lost all of them. Natasha had won two of them and Trip had won one. They were playing their fourth game, Trip had insisted so that he could redeem himself, so Skye waited patiently while her dad passed out the cards.

She was just about to grab her cards when she heard another loud crack and knew that it was another tree branch. She nervously glanced towards the windows and her earlier fears came rushing back to her. She really, _really_ didn't like storms.

The wind was howling and she heard a soft thud as something hit the side of the house. Skye made a distressed sound and crawled across the little circle they had made on the floor over to her mom. After clambering into May's lap, she made herself comfortable, leaned back against her mom's chest, and looked up at her and said, "Don't look at my cards, okay mommy?"

She felt her mom press a kiss to the top of her head, "I won't."

The wind was growing louder and the rain was slamming against the walls of the house and Skye was still afraid of falling branches but she felt safe in her mom's arms.

They went back to the game and Skye ignored the storm around her.

* * *

It had been a couple hours since they had played their last card game. It was dark out and the storm was still raging around them. Everyone was still in the living room except now they were all doing different things.

Trip was sprawled out in the chair, his legs were thrown haphazardly over the arms of the chair, and he was listening to some music. His head kept dropping to his shoulder for a minute or two before he would jerk awake, look around to see if anyone noticed that he had fallen asleep, and then repeat it.

Her mom and dad were both reading on the couch. Her dad was squinting because the power was still out and the candlelight was soft.

She was lying on the floor next to Nattie. Crayons were scattered around them and her princess coloring book was in front of them, half-colored.

Her eyes felt heavy and her eyelids kept drooping but she didn't want to fall asleep. She wanted to be awake so that if something bad was going to happen, she would know about it right away and could react. She didn't trust the wind or the trees or the rain.

She hadn't realized that she was slipping into unconsciousness until a gentle hand on her shoulder woke her up. After blinking blearily, she looked at the hand and then up at who the hand belonged to.

Her dad gave her a smile, "Bedtime."

She shook her head, "I'm not tired."

No one believed her.

Her dad crouched down and picked her up, "It's still bedtime."

She meant to shake her head, to wiggle around until her dad set her back on the floor, but her body wasn't listening to her. Instead, she leaned heavily against her dad's chest and rested her cheek on his shoulder, "I don't wanna."

Her dad started to make his was towards her room and when Skye looked back, she could see that her mom was following them.

Her dad didn't say anything and Skye made a sound of protest, "M'not even tired."

"I know you aren't sweetheart."

Her eyes shut without her permission and the next thing she knew, she was nestled in her warm bed with her dolls tucked securely around her. Her mom was pressing a kiss to her forehead and Skye blinked and tried to focus on her, "Is the storm gone yet?"

She didn't know why she asked that, she could still hear the wind and rain.

Her mom tucked her blankets around her, "Not yet."

It was probably because she was so tired, but she couldn't stop it when her eyes welled up with tears, "I don't like it."

Her dad came into view and he sat down on the edge of the bed, "It's almost gone sweetheart."

Pulling Alice and Mara close to her chest, she said, "It's scary."

Her mom reached forward and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "You've been very brave."

The storm was still scary but it felt good to be called brave. She grabbed onto her mom's hand and looked up at her, "Will you stay with me 'til I fall asleep?"

Both her parents nodded, "Of course."

Skye watched them sit down, rolled over, and shut her eyes. She fell asleep with the wind and rain whirling aggressively outside but she felt safe with the parents watching over her.

Please let me know what you think! How're you guys doing? I feel like it's been so long! I hope that everyone who's still going through finals is doing alright and everyone is having a fun holiday season :) Thanks for reading and don't forget to go vote on the poll for which one-shot I should write next! xx -Ariel


	52. Skye's First Mother's Day

**Hey guys! I know I said I was going to update TiaTWS next but I haven't had time to actually sit down and write. This chapter has been written out over the course of like the last four days and in about twenty minute intervals. It's been crazy! I'm flying home tomorrow and I promise to update before Christmas! ALSO, a lovely guest asked if I could do a Christmas one-shot since it's the holiday season. I'm 100% open to doing this but since I've already written a chapter centered around Christmas, it's really up to you guys! If you guys would like to see another Christmas chapter, let me know, and if you would rather I didn't write another Christmas chapter, let me know! Either way, let me know! And If you have any ideas, I'm always open to hearing them :)**

 **This chapter is based off of the prompt: "Skye's first Mother's Day." It was very fun to write and super fluffy so I hope you like it!**

 **I put up a new poll so don't forger to head over to my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! There are a bunch of new prompts up there :) As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Skye was nervous.

Mother's Day was coming up and Skye was very, very, nervous.

Skye had never celebrated Mother's Day before. She had never had anyone to celebrate it with and she had honestly forgotten about it until three days ago when Ms. Hill had announced to the class that they were going to be making cards for Mother's Day. That was when she had started to get nervous.

Skye didn't know much about Mother's Day except that she had always hoped that she would be able to celebrate it in the future. Now that she actually had a mother, she didn't want to mess this day up. She knew that this was the day that you were supposed to show your mom how much you appreciated her and even though Skye thought that her mom probably already knew how much she loved her, she wanted May to feel special and appreciated today because that was how her mom made her feel everyday.

Her dad had picked up on her anxiety and had told her that her mom wasn't expecting anything, that even if all they did was make her breakfast in bed that May would be extremely happy and content. Skye had believed him but that wasn't the point, the point was that her mom deserved to be pampered and valued and loved on this day. Her dad had offered to help her go pick out a present for her mom but Skye already had her present, she just hoped that she would like it.

When Skye was nervous, she had trouble sleeping, so she wasn't surprised when she woke up before the sun had risen.

After blearily rubbing her eyes and stretching, she sat up and tucked Alice back under the blankets so that her doll could sleep for a little longer.

She hopped off her bed and thought about what she should do. She didn't hear her dad making any noise in the kitchen and considered going into her parent's room to see if her dad was awake but if she did that, there was a chance that she would accidentally wake up her mom, and she didn't want to do that. She _could_ just stay in her room and play with her toys until the rest of her family started to wake up but she didn't really want to be by herself and there was no fun in that, so she quietly padded out of her room and down the hall.

Natasha's door was shut firmly and Skye didn't knock, instead she carefully opened it just enough so that she could quietly slip into the room, and slowly made her way towards the bed.

Her sister's room was dark, her curtains were shut tightly so that even if the sun was up, it wouldn't have made a difference, but Skye was so familiar with everything in here that she didn't need light to be able to make her way over to her sister without making any noises.

Obviously, Nattie was fast asleep.

Her sister was sleeping on her back, with her hair a dark red halo strewn everywhere and one hand tucked under her pillow. She was breathing deeply and her face was totally relaxed. Skye hoped that she was having a good dream.

Carefully, Skye climbed onto the bed. She made sure to move slowly so she didn't jostle her sister and lied down next to her. She cuddled close to Nattie's side and tried not to make any noise because her sister didn't like it when she was woken up before it was light out.

Despite her best efforts, Natasha's eyelids fluttered and she slipped her hand out from beneath her pillow and gently rubbed her eyes. Skye peered up at her and waited for her sister to notice that she was there.

Nattie didn't seem surprised to see her there. When her sister finally looked down at her, she just sighed heavily, rolled over so that she could pull Skye against her chest, and groaned, "I'm not even going to ask how early it is."

Skye pressed her face against Nattie's chest in an awkward hug and said, "Pretty early. The sun's still sleeping."

Nattie let out a long, suffering sigh, "What're you doing awake маленькая звезда?"

She shrugged, "I couldn't sleep."

Her sister ran her fingers through her hair and Skye pressed closer. Nattie's voice was soft when she said, "You're nervous, aren't you? About today?"

Skye shrugged again, "I've never really had a mom so I've never done anything for Mother's Day. I don't want to mess it up."

"You're putting too much pressure on yourself. Today's just like any other day. We always tell mom how much we love her and today we just show her how much we appreciate her."

Skye knew that Nattie was right and she tried to let her sister's words comfort her but she couldn't help her anxiety.

She didn't say anything, just cuddled impossibly closer to her sister and waited for the sun to rise so that she could go make breakfast for her mom.

* * *

Skye anxiously waited for the toast to pop out of the toaster. She didn't want to burn it, everything needed to be perfect, so as soon as the bread popped up, she grabbed it and dropped it onto a plate without burning her fingers.

Nattie moved over to help her slather butter and jam onto the two slices of toasted bread but she gently brushed her sister's hands aside and did it herself.

Thankfully, she didn't make too big of a mess and once she was done, she placed the toast onto the tray with the rest of her mom's breakfast.

She, Trip, and Natasha had made their mom's favorite breakfast. Sitting on the tray was a waffle with some sliced strawberries on top, a bowl full of fruit, two pieces of toast slathered with butter and blueberry jam, and a glass full of freshly squeezed orange juice. In addition to the food, Trip and Natasha had placed their presents on the tray as well. Skye had supervised everything and it was perfect.

Trip picked up the tray and Skye made sure he was very careful when they all made their way towards their parent's room. Natasha pushed open the door and helped Trip bring the tray inside while Skye ran past them.

Her parents were sitting on the bed, propped up against the headboard. Her dad was reading the newspaper and her mom was typing away on her laptop. Both of them grinned at her and Skye sprinted over to the bed, jumped onto it, and said, "Happy Mother's Day!"

Skye was about to launch herself into her mom' arms but paused so that May could set her laptop aside. Once the laptop was out of harm's way, Skye threw herself into her mom's outstretched arms and nestled close to her side. She felt her mom press a kiss to the top of her head before saying, "Thanks baby. What's all this?"

Skye pointed at the tray that Trip was placing over their mom's lap, "We made you breakfast. Look, we made all your favorites!"

Her mom surveyed the food in front of her and smiled, "You guys spoil me."

"I wish they'd spoil me some." Her dad reached over and tried to steal a piece of fruit but Trip intercepted him, "Hey, you'll get spoiled on Father's Day."

Skye giggled at the dejected look on her dad's face and her mom sat up a little straighter, "We can all share."

Skye looked up to make sure her mom wasn't lying. She wanted to make sure that her mom knew that she really didn't have to share if she didn't want to because this was her day to feel special, "Are you sure?"

Her mom nodded and pressed another kiss to the top of her head, "I'm sure."

Since she, Natasha, and Trip had already eaten, they watched as their parents shared breakfast. Everyone chatted and Skye kept checking to see if her mom was having a good time. It looked like she was and Skye hoped that she wasn't faking it.

Once the food was gone, Natasha reached for her present and grinned as she handed it to May, "Here mom, Happy Mother's Day."

Her mom gave them all a look, "You guys didn't have to get me anything."

Natasha raised an eyebrow, "We wanted to."

Skye nodded, "Yeah, we wanted to."

Their mom gave them another smile before opening up Natasha's present. She carefully tore open the envelope and pulled out a pretty card.

Skye never really liked when people read what she wrote on cards, it was personal, so she didn't try to lean forward and read Natasha's words. She hung back and waited until her mom reached forward and gave Nattie a tight hug, "Thank you Natasha, I love it."

Her sister grinned and hugged May back, "You're welcome. I love you mom."

Her mom made a soft sound and kissed Natasha's forehead, "I love you too."

It was a sweet moment and Skye couldn't help but smile. Her grin widened when Trip laughed, picked up his gift, and handed his gift to their mom, "Alright, alright, my turn. Here, open this."

Nattie huffed but moved over so that their mom had room to open up Trip's envelope. When she opened up the card, a piece of paper fell out and her mom gave it a confused look before picking it up and reading it. Before their mom could say anything, Trip spoke up, "It's a gift certificate to that new spa that opened up in town. I was thinking that you, Nat, and Skye could go together."

She and Nattie made happy sounds and watched as their mom read through the rest of Trip's card, gave him a big smile, and leaned forward to hug him, "Thank you Trip. You really didn't need to get me anything though."

Trip shrugged, "I know but I wanted to."

May set the cards on her bedside table and gave them all a smile, "Well I love my gifts, thank you."

Nervously, Skye cleared her throat, "I have a present for you mommy."

She glanced around and bit her lip. She loved her dad, brother, and sister, but she didn't really want to give her mom her present while they were there. Partly because she didn't know if her mom was going to like it and didn't want them to be around to see if she hated it and partly because she wanted a private moment alone with her mom.

After forcing herself to stop biting her lip, she grabbed onto her mom's hand and tugged, "I left it in my room, c'mon."

Her dad lifted the tray so that her mom could move and Skye pulled her out of the room, trying to calm down her nerves the whole time.

She felt her mom squeeze her hand and the tightness in her tummy went away a little.

Her door was already open so she led her mom into her room and towards her bed before pushing her mom on to it, "Hang on."

Her mom made herself comfy on Skye's bed and nodded patiently before Skye crouched down and reached under her bed. She fished around for a moment until her hand found what it was looking for and she pulled the present out.

She avoided her mom's eyes as she climbed onto her bed and sat down across from her. Before she could stop herself, she pushed her card into her mom's hands and kept the other part of her present behind her back.

Rather than watch her mom's reaction as she read the card, Skye stared at her mom's wedding ring. She already had the pretty ring memorized but she tried to find a missing detail as she waited for her mom to say something.

After what felt like forever, her mom finally spoke up, " Oh Skye, this is beautiful. Thank you so much."

Her mom sounded earnest and when Skye finally looked up at her, she saw that May was smiling down at her and holding her card close to her chest. Even though her mom sounded like she was telling the truth, Skye needed to make sure, "You really like it?"

Her mom must have sensed her doubts because before Skye knew what was happening, she was being pulled onto her mom's lap and hugged tightly, "I love it, I love it so much. Thank you Skye."

She felt herself relax a little and looked down at the card that her mom was still holding.

The front of the card really wasn't that special. It was made out of pink construction paper and Skye had drawn a big heart on the front of it. Jemma had helped her outline the heart with red glitter glue and Skye was really proud of herself for not smudging it. It was the inside of the card that was special.

Skye's note on the inside had taken her two days in class to write out. She hadn't wanted to ask Ms. Hill for help because she was writing down things that she didn't really want anyone else to read except for her mom so she had had to look up all the words to make sure she spelled everything right. She had written in dark blue marker and had tried to write her letters as neat as she could and it said:

"Dear Mommy,

Happy Mother's Day! I'm so happy that you're my mom and even if I could have picked anyone else in the whole world to be my mom, I still would have chosen you because you're the best and nicest and most amazing mom ever. Thank you for taking care of me and for loving me. I love you to the moon and back and more than all the stars in the sky.

Love, Skye"

She had even drawn a little moon and some stars underneath the words.

Her mom ran her fingers through her hair and Skye leaned into the touch. Since her mom seemed to genuinely like her card, Skye didn't feel as anxious when she handed her mom the next part of her gift, "Here, this is for you too."

Skye carefully placed the handmade bracelet into her mom's palm and watched her examine it. Before she could say anything, Skye spoke up and explained, "I made one for you and one for me. They're friendship bracelets, see?"

Skye shook her wrist in front of her mom's face so that she could see the bead bracelet that was already tied onto her arm. It looked exactly like her mom's, with light blue and white beads decorating the majority of it, the only difference was that Skye's bracelet said "BEST", while her mom's bracelet said, "FRIENDS." Each of the words were spelled out in purple sparkly beads.

Her mom was staring at the bracelet and Skye started to worry that she didn't like it but then May swallowed thickly and pulled Skye impossibly closer, "I'm your best friend? What about Tasha or Jemma?"

Skye shook her head, "They're my best friends but you're my _favorite_ best friend."

It was true. Nattie and Jemma and Fitz and all of her other best friends were amazing and she loved them but her mom was her bestest best friend. She could go to her mom with anything and no matter what, Skye knew that her mom would always love her. She wanted to be just like her mom when she grew up.

She wiggled around a little so that her mom's grip on her loosened enough so that she could stretch up and look her in the eyes, "You're my favorite person in the whole world and I love you mommy."

Her mom blinked rapidly and pulled her into another hug, "I love you too Skye."

Skye hugged her back and felt her remaining anxiety disappear completely.

After a few moments, Skye said, "So, what do you wanna do today?"

Her mom pulled back and looked down at her, "I kind of just want to hang out with you guys."

Even though they did that every weekend, Skye grinned and told herself that she would make today extra special, "We can play with my dolls! I'll let you play with Alice, mommy."

She hopped out of her mom's lap and off the bed before tugging on her mom's hand. Her mom laughed and followed after, "Oh wow, is Alice okay with that?"

Skye grabbed her doll and led her mom to the dollhouse sitting on her floor, "She's okay with it. You're her second favorite."

After sitting on the ground, she handed her doll to her mom and grabbed Mara. Her mom sat down next to her, "Her second favorite?"

Even though it was supposed to be her mom's special day, Skye didn't want to lie to her, "Yeah, I'm her favorite."

Her mom laughed and gave her an affectionate look before pretending to make Alice say hi to Mara.

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What'd you guys think? I've missed writing out cute Skye and May scenes :) Let me know what you guys think about that Xmas one-shot! Thank you so much for reading and don't forget to go vote on the new poll! xx -Ariel


	53. The Coulson's New Years Party

**Hey guys! So, since I didn't post another Christmas chapter (I was planning on it but I ended up being _way_ busier than I though I was going to be) I decided to post a New Year's chapter! It's just a cute, fluffy chapter with all of Skye's friends. I hope you all like it!**

 **I hope everyone has an awesome new year and if you're going out to celebrate, please stay safe! Don't forget to head over to the new poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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"Hi Bucky! Hi Steve! Hi Clint!" Skye pushed her way around where her mom was standing in front of the door and pulled the three boys inside. Her mom shut the door and Skye stepped back a little so that she could twirl around, "Look at my dress! Isn't it pretty?"

Clint spoke up, "It's very pretty."

"And sparkly," Steve added.

"I especially like how you paired it with your combat boots. Nice touch." Bucky said.

Skye grinned and stopped twirling, "Thank you!"

She smoothed down her sparkly dark blue dress and grabbed onto Bucky's hand, "Nattie's in the kitchen. She keeps stealing all the snacks."

Weaving through all the people crowding her home, she led the guys to Natasha.

Her parents had told her that they were throwing their annual New Year's Eve Party a couple of weeks ago and Skye had been excited about it ever since. She had helped her family make the food, had decorated with her siblings, and had received her dress as a gift from her mom.

There were a _lot_ of people roaming around her house right now. Some people she didn't know but she recognized most of them. Pepper, Tony, Thor, and Jane were standing across from each other in the living room. It looked like Tony and Thor were having an intense conversation while Pepper and Jane looked on with amused expressions on their faces. Her mom and dad were surrounded by a bunch of grown-ups from work, Skye had promptly forgotten their names as soon as she had been introduced, and both of them waved hello to the boys before continuing on with their conversation.

She spotted Jemma's parents and Lincoln's parents laughing by the staircase and gave them a grin before continuing towards the kitchen. Trip and all of his friends were seated around the dining room table. They had brought in extra chairs but they were all smooshed close together and talking heatedly and competitively about the board game that was sitting in front of all of them. Bobbi poked Skye's tummy as she walked by and Skye laughed, pushed her hand away, and stuck her tongue out at the older girl before tugging on Bucky's hand so that he would move faster.

 _Finally_ , she made to the kitchen, where Natasha, Wanda, and Pietro were stuffing their faces with food. Pietro kept picking up pretzels but before he could eat them, Wanda would steal them from him and pop them into her mouth. Finally Pietro made an irritated sound, grabbed the whole bowl of pretzels, and walked out of the kitchen and away from Wanda.

Nattie was munching on a chocolate covered strawberry and Skye let go of Bucky's hand so that she could run up to her sister and tug on her shirt, "I want one!"

Clint chimed in from behind her, "Yeah, me too."

Natasha handed her a strawberry and she took a minute to appreciate the pretty food before shoving it into her mouth.

Her sister tossed a strawberry to Clint but Steve intercepted it and ate it with a smirk on his face. Skye giggled and leaned into her sister's side as she watched Clint and Steve start to wrestle with each other.

She turned back to the counter and tried to reach for another strawberry when a hand grabbed onto hers and tugged her out of the kitchen. She made a sound of protest and reached back for the strawberries that were getting further and further away from her before finally giving up and looking back to see who had pulled her away from the delectable treats.

Jemma was pulling her out of kitchen and into the dining room. Her friend was giggling and Skye shook off her slight irritation at being pulled away from food so that she could follow her best friend as they weaved around adults and ducked under the dining room table. They crouched down and shuffled from one end of the table towards the other, Skye paused to pinch Hunter's leg and giggled when he yelped, but kept scrambling away when Jemma tugged on her hand.

They both ran out of the dining room and into the living room. Her dad reached out and affectionately patted her shoulder as she ran by him. She looked back and gave him a smile and let Jemma pull her past a cluster of adults and into the space between the couch and the wall.

Fitz, Lincoln, Ward, and Thomas were waiting for them there and Skye laughed at how uncomfortable they all looked, squeezed close together and with Ward's knees jabbing into Fitz's chest and Thomas' elbow poking into Lincoln's side.

Skye tucked her legs underneath her and leaned towards her friends, "What's the mission?"

They had been playing spies all night and Skye was hoping that her friends had come up with another mission for them to complete.

Fitz was too busy trying to get Ward's knees away from his chest so he could breathe to answer and Lincoln just shrugged so Skye nodded and thought quickly, "Okay, we need to save the plate of strawberries from the kitchen, and we can't be seen by _anyone_. My sister's going to eat all of them."

Her friends nodded seriously before Thomas spoke up, "I'll cover you guys."

Skye nodded, "Thanks, let's go guys."

They all crawled out from behind the couch and stayed low to the ground as they scurried towards the bookshelf so that they had cover. Once they were safely tucked away from sight, Ward made a bunch of hand motions that Skye guessed were supposed to mean something but she had no idea what he was trying to say.

She gave him a clueless look and he sighed exasperatedly, "Just follow me."

Everyone nodded and Skye stayed close to him as they maneuvered around the living room. She felt Jemma grab onto the back of her dress and Skye quickly reached back and pried her best friend's fingers off of her pretty dress and held her hand instead.

She looked back when she heard a small crash and a grunt of pain. Fitz had smacked his shin against the edge of an end-table and was hopping up and down with one hand holding onto his hurt shin.

They all stopped and started to make their way back to Fitz but he waved them on and dramatically whispered, "Go! Save yourselves!" before collapsing onto the floor and pretending to take his last breath.

Skye giggled when she saw him open up one eye to make sure they were watching him. When he saw that they were, he let out _another_ deep, wheezing breath and died _again._

Trying not to laugh again, she tugged on Jemma's hand and pulled on Lincoln's shirt, "C'mon, we need to complete the mission."

Jemma reached forward and gently patted Fitz's cheek before turning and following the rest of them out of the living room and into the dining room.

Trip and all of his friends were still sitting around the table, their boardgame lying forgotten in front of them, and they were talking rowdily and poking fun at each other.

Ward made some more of his weird hand motions and Skye looked at Jemma before both of them rolled their eyes at him and crawled sneakily beneath the table. They all dodged feet and Lincoln narrowly missed being kicked in the fact by Mack.

Skye caught Jemma reaching out from under the table to grab a couple of crackers from the top of the table. Her friend was about to take a bite out of the cracker when a pair of hands grabbed her from around the waist. Skye watched as her friend's eyes widened comically and she was pulled out from underneath the table by Bobbi, who was saying, "What're you doing under there?"

Jemma was pulled up and onto Bobbi's lap and Skye went to reach for her friend but Ward stopped her by putting a hand on her arm and whispering, "We have to continue with the mission."

She was about to argue with Ward but then she heard Jemma laugh at something Bobbi was saying and decided that her friend was alright.

Skye sighed and let Ward pull her out from under the table with Lincoln following them. Luckily, Nattie and her friends had left the kitchen so the plate full of chocolate covered strawberries were in sight.

Rushing forward, she was about to grab the plate full of delicious strawberries when a voice stopped her, "Skye, don't eat _too_ much junk, okay sweetie?"

Stomping her foot, she groaned and looked up at the ceiling, "We were so _close_!"

Her dad sounded confused, "What?"

Lincoln and Ward were groaning behind her and she straightened up and turned to her dad, "Nothing daddy, I won't eat anymore chocolate."

He nodded at her, turned on his heel, and walked back towards the living room.

She turned back to her friends, "We failed our mission."

Fitz's voice had them turning to where he was peering around the counter at them, "You mean I died for nothing?!"

Skye looked at Ward and they both dissolved into a fit of giggles, "C'mon! Let's go mess with Hunter!"

* * *

Skye felt someone poke her on the arm and she jerked awake, "I'm not sleeping!"

Everyone around her laughed and she leaned further back against Natasha's chest and mumbled, "What? I wasn't!"

Nattie patted her thigh gently, "I know you weren't маленькая звезда." Clint nodded in solidarity and she grinned at him.

Natasha poked her again and said, "Your friends are leaving. I thought you might want to say goodbye."

Looking over, she saw Jemma's mom carrying her sleepy friend while trying to put on her coat. Fitz was holding onto his mom's hand while she searched for her car keys and Skye watched as his head kept dropping down before he would jerk back awake.

Thor was holding Thomas, who was softly snoring, while Jane helped Ward put his jacket on. Lincoln was pulling on his mom's arm and looked like he had just woken up.

Sliding off of her sister's lap, she walked over to the group standing by the door and waved, "Bye guys."

Ward and Lincoln both said goodbye to her while Jemma waved back sleepily.

She watched as her friends all made their way outside and then walked back over to her sister and her friends. Clint was saying something that Nattie and Bucky were laughing at and Steve leaned over to punch him on the arm.

Skye cracked a grin, shook off the rest of her sleepiness, and climbed onto Bucky's lap, "What're you laughing at?"

* * *

All of the grown-ups were still downstairs but Skye had snuck upstairs to get away from all the noise and people. Her dress was pretty but it was starting to get a little uncomfortable so she quickly made her way into her room and struggled with the zipper on her dress for a few moments before wiggling her way out of it and into her comfy Captain America pajamas. She tugged her hair out of its ponytail and ran her fingers through it to try and tame it. She would have to ask her mom to comb out the tangles for her later.

Once she was comfy, she grabbed Alice and Rapunzel from her dollhouse and walked out of her room towards the playroom. She peeked into the room and was relieved to find that it was empty.

After dragging a beanbag chair in front of the t.v., she grabbed the remote, turned it on, and looked through the channels until she found Spongebob, and clicked on the show. She sat back in her comfy chair and watched the silly sponge and his friends wreak havoc on Bikini Bottom.

Skye wasn't sure how much time had passed when someone opened up the playroom door and woke her up. Her neck kind of hurt from how it had been positioned when she had fallen asleep sitting upright, but she just rubbed it and looked over to the doorway to see her mom walking towards her.

May pulled her up, sat down on the beanbag chair, and placed Skye back onto her lap, "Three minutes until the new year."

Skye cuddled into her mom's chest and mumbled, "What about the party?"

Her mom grabbed the remote and changed the channel until they were watching the countdown in Times Square, "I think it'll survive three minutes without me. Besides, I want to start to new year off with you."

Skye grinned and looked up at her mom, "Are we gonna have a party every year?"

"Yeah sweetie, it's a tradition."

It was exciting to think about, that she would have plans for years into the future. It was hard to get used to sometimes. Before, she barely even knew what she was going to be doing in a week, now she had plans for the next few years.

The sound of people counting down from ten stopped her from saying anything and she turned back to the t.v. screen. There was a giant crowd in Times Square and everyone was chanting and laughing and even though Skye didn't think she would ever feel comfortable in a crowd that large, she couldn't help but let their excitement and happiness wash through her.

She felt her mom lean down and whisper, "Three...two...one. Happy new year Skye."

Grinning up at her mom, she said, "Happy new year mommy."

Her mom started peppering soft kisses all over her face and Skye just laughed and let her. With how this year was starting off, she knew it was going to be the best year ever.

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Let me know what you guys thought! Thank you so much for reading you guys and don't forget to go vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next (If you have an idea for a prompt, I'd love to hear it :P ) xx -Ariel


	54. Skye Tries To Cheer Natasha Up

**Hey guys! I hope everyone's having a lovely new year so far! This one-shot is based off of a guest's prompt, and it says: "Maybe Natasha is upset because of something (a bad grade, someone mean, etc.), May tries to comfort her but can't figure out why Nat's sad. Skye is worried so she manages to get Nat to tell her what's wrong and then cheers her up."**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next. Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye ran ahead of her mom as soon as she was free of her booster seat. She was in a good mood today. She had improved on her reading and gone up a reading level, so her mom had brought her to the bookstore after school. She had spent an hour in there finding two perfect books and playing on the child-sized plastic train the was set up in the kids section of the store.

Swinging her bag full of books by her side, she pulled the front door open and eagerly ran inside so that she could find someone who would listen to her talk about her awesome day.

Looking ahead of her, she saw Trip rummaging through the refrigerator and happily made her way towards him. As she ran through the living room, she stopped when she saw her sister lying down on the couch.

Nattie was lying on her back with an arm thrown over her face. She was pressed close between the cushions and the back of the couch so Skye hadn't noticed her at first.

Grinning widely, she skipped up to the couch and leaned down a little so that her face was right over her sister's, "Nattie! I had a _great_ day today, wanna know what I did?"

Natasha's face was still hidden by her arm and she didn't make an attempt to move it, instead, she just mumbled, "Maybe later Skye."

Sky's smile slid off of her face. Natasha sounded upset and usually her sister was happy to talk to her. Nattie's dour mood immediately affected her and Skye felt her good mood start to slip away as she looked at her sister with concern, "Are you okay?"

Nattie didn't move, she didn't even look at her, "I'm fine."

Skye dejectedly took a step back and felt her lower lip start to wobble a little bit. Natasha _never_ talked to her like this, like she was barely tolerating her, and it made Skye's chest hurt.

A warm hand on her shoulder had her looking up at her mom, who was staring worriedly at Natasha. May rubbed small circles onto her shoulder and said, "What's wrong Natasha?"

Skye leaned into her mom's side and watched as her sister bit her lip and shook her head before _finally_ moving her arm so that they could see her face, "Nothing's wrong."

It was clear to everyone that there was _something_ wrong.

May gave Natasha a disbelieving look but Nattie pretended not to see it.

"Did something happen at school?" May's voice was calm and soothing and Skye pressed herself closer to her mom.

Apparently, Natasha didn't find May as soothing as she did because Skye watched as her sister let out a slightly irritated breath and sat up, "Nothing happened mom, I'm fine."

Hoping to make her sister feel better and to diffuse the weird energy in the room, Skye set her bag of books down and looked up at Nattie, "Wanna go play on the swings with me?"

"Maybe later Skye, I've got homework to do." With that, Natasha quickly stood up and disappeared up the staircase.

Getting brushed off by her sister made Skye feel sad and when she tearfully looked up at her mom, May made a soft sound, lifted her up, and cuddled her close. Skye wound her arms around her mom's neck and sniffled, "Is Nattie mad at me?"

Her mom leaned forward to press a kiss to Skye's forehead, "No baby, she's just… not in a very good mood right now."

Skye looked towards where her sister had disappeared up the staircase and tried to push aside the sadness she was feeling.

"Why don't we leave her alone for a little while and make some chocolate chip cookies? We can surprise your daddy when he gets home." Her mom's words seemed to do the trick because Skye momentarily forgot about her sister and grinned at her mom, "Can we use a lot of chocolate chips? I like a _lot_ of chocolate."

Her mom laughed and walked towards the kitchen, "Let's see what the recipe says."

* * *

Skye sneakily picked up a cookie while her mom was still taking the rest of the cookies off of the hot cooking sheet and placing them onto the cooling rack. The cookie was still warm but Skye shoved it into her mouth anyway so that her mom wouldn't notice. She winced a little as the yummy treat slightly burned her tongue.

"I saw that."

Skye disbelievingly looked over to her mom, who was still focused on transferring the cookies onto the cooling rack. There was no way she should have been able to see her.

Scrunching up her nose, Skye said, "How?"

Her mom placed the last cookie onto the rack and turned to her, "I'm your mom, I see everything."

Grinning cheekily, Skye hid a hand behind her back and said, "If you can see everything, how many fingers am I holding up?"

Her mom walked over to her and put a hand on her hip, "Okay smartie pants, I can see most things."

Smiling triumphantly, Skye went to reach for another cookie but her mom stopped her, "No more until after dinner."

Skye groaned and her mom lifted her off the counter and set her on the ground, "Why don't you go put your new books away and start your homework. Let me know if you need any help, okay?"

"Okay." She waited until her mom's back was turned to grab another cookie before scurrying away. She didn't feel _too_ guilty for not listening to her mom because this cookie wasn't for her, she was going to go give it to her sister so that maybe Natasha would be in a better mood.

After picking up her backpack and bag of books, she made her way upstairs and stopped in front of her sister's room. The door was shut and Skye traced the painting on her sister's door with her fingertip for a couple of moments so that she could work up the nerve to go in there. Usually Skye had no problem barging into Natasha's room but today was different. She didn't know if Nattie wanted to see her.

Taking a deep breath, she slowly pulled open the door and peered inside.

Natasha was sitting on the center of her bed. She had textbooks and notes scattered around her but she was wasn't working on any homework, she was just staring off into space.

Her sister didn't notice her until she was standing right next to her. Reaching out, Skye grabbed Natasha's hand and placed the cookie in it, "Mommy and I made these. I stole one for you."

Nattie took a bite out of the cookie and gave her a tiny smile. Skye hoped that that meant that she was happy again but when she spoke, she was still using that tone that meant that she wanted to be alone, "Thanks Skye."

Nodding gloomily, she made her way out of her sister's room but paused at the doorway. Looking back, she worriedly asked, "Are you mad at me? Mommy says you're not but I wanna make sure."

Natasha looked up at her and shook her head, "I'm not mad at you маленькая звезда."

The use of Natasha's nickname for her was what convinced her that she was telling the truth and helped to lift a small weight off of her shoulders. Now that she knew Nattie's bad mood wasn't because of her, Skye wanted to know what was wrong and how she could help, "Are you mad at mommy or daddy? Are you mad at Trip? Did he hide your phone from you again?"

Nattie shook her head again and sighed before collapsing back onto the bed so that she was staring up at the ceiling, "I'm not mad, I'm just… upset, I guess."

Since Nattie was talking to her, Skye figured that that was invitation enough for her to stay and linger. She slowly walked back into the room and stood in front of the bed for a moment before shrugging and climbing onto it. She lied down next to her sister and they both stared up at the ceiling, "Wanna talk about it?"

"Not right now," From the corner of her eye, Skye saw Natasha and turn towards her, "Why was your day so great?"

The abrupt topic change confused Skye for a second, "What?"

Natasha reached back and grabbed a pillow before placing it under both of their heads, "You said you had a great day today. Tell me about it?"

Skye felt Nattie reach down and intertwine their pinkies and she knew that that was her sister's way of apologizing for being so distant earlier. Grinning a little bit, she rolled over so that she was tucked into Nattie's side and looked up at her, "Ms. Hill gave me another reading test and I went up a reading level! She said that I'm all caught up with everyone else in the class now and that she's proud of how hard I've been working."

Her sister squeezed her pinky and when she spoke up, her voice sounded warmer, "That's amazing маленькая звезда. I'm proud of you."

Skye's grin widened and she pressed closer to Nattie, "Thanks. Mommy took me to the bookstore after school and got me two new books."

Natasha leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head before squeezing her tight and saying, "You're so smart, little monkey, don't let anyone tell you that you aren't."

Skye thought that it was kind of odd for Nattie to say that but she didn't say anything about it.

They sat in silence for a few moments before Skye sat up a little and looked down at her sister, "Want me to read to you?"

Natasha nodded and Skye smiled and hopped off the bed so that she could grab one of her new books from where she had left them by the doorway. When she climbed back onto the bed, Nattie had sat up and was leaning against the headboard so Skye sat next to her and leaned into her side. She put the book on her lap, cleared her throat, and tilted the cover so that her sister could see it. There was a picture of a green tree and it looked like the tree was purposefully dropping an apple into the hands of a little boy wearing overalls. 'The Giving Tree' was written on the top center of the book in scratchy handwriting.

Once she was satisfied that they had admired the front cover for long enough, Skye opened the book and flipped to the first page, "Once there was a tree… and she loved a little boy."

Skye slowly made her way through the book. Most of the words were easy enough to read but the pictures were so pretty that she just had to slow down and admire them. Nattie didn't seem to mind and by the time she finished reading the book, her sister was curled towards her and listening intently.

The book was kind of sad but Skye really liked it. She and Natasha both sat in silence for a few moments and thought about the story that they had just read. Skye was tracing the drawing of the tree on the front cover when Nattie broke the silence, "I'm sorry I wasn't very nice to you today."

"That's okay."

Her sister shook her head and pulled her closer, "No it's not and I'm sorry. I had a bad day at school."

Skye peered up at Natasha and saw that her sister looked a little sad, "What happened?"

Rather than saying anything, her sister leaned over and fished around the pile of textbooks at their feet before grabbing a piece of paper and handing it to her. Natasha was avoiding looking at her so Skye studied the piece of paper in her hands.

The top of the paper said that it was a math test.

Skye had trouble understanding first grade math so she had no idea what the symbols and numbers on this paper meant. What she did understand was the familiar red x's that marked up a fairly large section of the page. She felt sympathy rush through her when she saw the big 'F' circled in red marker at the top of the page.

She set the paper down and was about to say something but Natasha didn't give her a chance, "I studied so hard for that stupid test, I even watched some of those educational videos that are supposed to teach you how to understand this stuff, but I guess it didn't work."

Skye pressed her face against her sister's arm, "I'm sorry this made you sad Nattie."

After having to see a bunch of those red marks on some of her own tests, Skye knew how upset they could make you.

Natasha nodded, "I mean, failing this test sucked but I had failed them before and knew that if I asked my teacher, she would help me out and give me some extra credit. What _really_ sucked was that some guy saw my grade, laughed, and said something about me not caring if I failed this class, which is dumb because I _do_ care."

Skye sat up straighter, "Who said that?"

Even though she knew that she probably would never meet this kid, she wanted to give him a piece of her mind.

Her sister's lips twitched up into a tiny smile, "You don't know him and he's just some irrelevant jerk."

Even though Nattie said that this person was irrelevant, she still knew that his words had hurt her sister's feelings. She wanted to make Natasha feel better.

Skye sat up so that she was kneeling and face to face with her sister, "Nattie, listen to me."

She put her hands on her sister's cheeks so that she could make sure that her sister was focusing solely on her. Amusement flickered through Nattie's features, "I'm listening."

"You're super smart, like one of the smartest people I know, and that guys is a meanie and a dummy and you shouldn't listen to him."

The amusement on her sister's face had faded and Natasha was now looking at her seriously, "I know I shouldn't listen to him but it just sucks 'cause it seems like no matter how hard I study, I never understand what my teacher's trying to teach me."

The sadness in Nattie's voice made Skye feel sad. She climbed onto Natasha's lap and wrapped her sister up into a tight hug. She felt Nattie press her face against her shoulder and ran a comforting hand through Natasha's hair.

She wished that she could make her sister feel better but she knew that there wasn't really anything that she could do other than be here to comfort her.

They hugged tightly for a little while and Natasha was the first one to lean back, "Thanks Skye, I feel a little better."

Skye smiled at her and said what her family always said to her when they helped comfort her, "That's what I'm here for."

Natasha laughed lightly and looked like she was about to say something when their mom's voice from downstairs stopped them, "How's the homework coming Skye?"

Skye guiltily looked at her sister, "I'm supposed to be doing homework."

"Why don't you do it in here with me?"

The fact that Nattie didn't want to be alone anymore was proof enough that her sister was feeling better.

Smiling, she climbed off of Natasha's lap, grabbed her backpack, and spread her workbooks out next to all of Nattie's textbooks. Both girls situated themselves so that they were sitting next to each other, working side by side and silently enjoying each others company.

* * *

I love writing these two so much :D Let me know what you guys think! Also, I hope you guys are having a great new year so far and are keeping up with your resolutions (also, what are your guys' resolutions? I'm super curious to know! Mine are to write a little more and to take better notes for my classes lol).

Thank you so much for reading! You're all lovely daisies and I appreciate all of you :) xx -Ariel


	55. Skye Doesn't Want To Be Sent Back

**Hey guys! This week has been rough and I'm sorry it took so long to update. This was inspired by a Guest's prompt: "Can you write something where Skye does something that she thinks is really bad, that got her kicked out of a foster home where she felt pretty secure once before? Even though she's adopted and feels loved, it stirs up old fears." I hope you like it!**

 **Don't forget to head over to the new poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to read next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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Skye wasn't a fan of spring cleaning. Actually, she wasn't a fan of cleaning in general but for some reason, spring cleaning was worse. Rather than just shoving all of her toys under her bed, her parents made her go through _everything_ , decide if she wanted to keep it or not, and then reorganize it all. It was boring and Skye didn't like getting rid of any of her things, they were _hers_ and she loved all of her toys.

Luckily, she had finished cleaning her room yesterday. It had taken _hours_ to go through all of her things and her parents had had to constantly remind her that since some of her clothes didn't fit her anymore, it was okay to donate them. Skye had trouble letting go of things that were hers.

Today, they were cleaning the kitchen and dining room. Somehow, Natasha and Trip had weaseled their way out of cleaning. Trip had said he needed to do a project and Nattie had escaped to the mall with her friends, so it was just her and her parents. They had cleaned and disinfected all of the appliances, had rearranged their cabinets, and had dusted every surface. Right now, Skye was carefully wiping down the glass on the sliding glass door that led out to the backyard while her parents were taking the nice china out from the display cabinet in the dining room.

Skye sprayed some window cleaner onto the glass door and wiped it down, giggling a little when it squeaked. Once she cleaned as much of the door as she could reach, she set her cleaning supplies down and turned to study the pretty china dishware that was sitting in stacks on the entirety of the table.

Climbing onto a chair, she peered down at the dishes. The majority of the dishes were a pearly white and had a pretty dark blue design. The blue swirled around the plates, bowls, and cups, and had tiny flowers decorating them.

Skye liked them.

She reached forward to trace one of the little flowers on one of the teacups. Just as she was about to touch it, her mom's voice stopped her, "Don't touch sweetie!"

Jerking her hand back, she glanced over to her mom, "Why?"

"They were a wedding gift from my parents and are very expensive and delicate." Her mom gently guided her off of the chair and nudged her towards the living room, "You've been such a good little helper, why don't you go play?"

Skye didn't need to be asked twice, she darted into the living room where her dolls were waiting for her. Happily, she hopped onto the couch, making sure not to jostle her little doll friends, and pretended to make them talk to each other.

It didn't take long for her to get bored. Usually, Trip and Natasha were around to play with her at this time of the day. Skye loved playing with her dolls but when there was no one to make up stories with her, she quickly lost interest.

Sighing dramatically, she slowly slid off the couch until she was lying down on the floor on her tummy. She was wondering if it was too late to go over to Jemma's house when she saw something stuck under the couch. Stretching her arm out as far as it would go, she reached for the brightly colored bouncy ball that was hidden underneath the couch. When her fingers finally grabbed onto the ball, she made a triumphant noise, pulled her arm back, and stood up.

She had no idea where the bouncy ball had come from, maybe Fitz had left it at her house, but she was excited to play with it. She dropped it onto the ground and yelped when it bounced back towards her face. Quickly, she blocked her face with her hands and felt the ball bounce off of her fingers. She chased after the ball before it could roll under another piece of furniture and grabbed it.

Giggling, she repeatedly bounced the ball off the floor and chased after it. She was having so much fun that she hadn't even realized that she had been inching towards the dining room and when her bouncy ball bounced under the table, she ran after it and accidently bumped into one of the table legs. She didn't think anything of it until a loud crash had her jumping in surprise. She kind of forgot that she was currently under the table because when she jumped, she hit her head on the underside of the table. The pain that flashed through her head was enough to make her eyes well up with tears and she momentarily forgot about the loud noise until the sound of her parents voices caused her to focus on what was going on around her.

There were shattered dishes scattered all around the table in front of her. Some of the shards were decorated with pretty blue flowers and the tears that had been pooling in her eyes spilled over when she realized that she had broken some of the beautiful, expensive dishware that her parents loved so much.

Ignoring the dull pain in her head, she carefully crawled towards the edge of the table so that she could see her parents.

They were both looking down at the broken pieces of plates and cups with devastated looks on their faces. She sniffled and guiltily looked up at her mom.

"Oh Skye." The disappointed way her mom said her name made her start to cry a little harder.

She knew she couldn't fix what she had done, but she had to try and make it better. Reaching forward, she carefully picked up one of the bigger shards, "I'm sorry! I'll fix it!"

"No! Skye, don't touch anything." A big hand came into view and gingerly took the shard of china out of her hands. Her dad set the piece of china onto the table, reached under the table, and picked her up. She tried to wrap her arms around his neck and give him a hug but he set her down a safe distance away from the table before she could, "Don't move, okay?"

She ran a hand over her face, sniffled, and nodded.

Her mom disappeared and then came back into view holding a broom and a dustpan. Her dad picked up the bigger shards of dishware while her mom swept up the rest. She stayed off to the side and forced herself to stop crying.

Her head still hurt a little bit and she curiously raised her hand and gently prodded it. She winced and whimpered when pain washed through her.

Her mom must have heard her because next thing she knew, May was handing Phil the broom and was walking towards her. To avoid eye contact, Skye stared at her toes.

"Are you okay?" Her mom's voice was softer than before but Skye could still hear the disappointment in her voice.

Skye felt so bad, she hadn't meant to break the pretty dishes and she knew that her parents were upset about it. It would have been better if her mom would just yell at her. The disappointment was worse. Skye felt like she let her parents down and it made her chest hurt.

"I hit my head." Even though she knew it would hurt, she raised her hand to touch her head again but her mom stopped her, "Don't touch. C'mere."

She gave a wide berth around the table and followed her mom into the kitchen. She fidgeted from side to side until her mom handed her an ice pack and she carefully held it against her head.

Her mom smoothed a hand over her hair, avoiding the tender area, before going back over to the table to help her dad.

Skye held the ice to her head and while that part of her started to feel better, the rest of her started to feel worse. Her parents looked sad and a little upset as they finished cleaning up the dishes and it was because of her. The worst part was how disappointed they were in her and the fact that they were acting a little standoffish had Skye's stomach in knots.

Logically, Skye knew that her parents loved her no matter what but in the moment, she couldn't help but feel like maybe this would be it, this would be the thing that had them sending her back to the orphanage. She had broken something that they obviously loved deeply and she had been sent back for less.

That thought alone was enough to make her start crying again. She didn't want to be sent away, this was her family and she wanted to stay with them forever.

Backing up until her back hit the cabinets, she slid down onto the floor, wrapped her arms around her legs, and cried.

It only took a few seconds until she felt a warm hand start to rub circles onto her back. Tearfully, she looked up and saw that her parents were sitting beside her.

She bit the inside of her cheek, tried to calm down a little bit, and hiccupped, "I'm sorry! I'll g-get you new dishes! Y-you can have all the money in my piggy bank!"

Her mom continued to rub comforting circles onto her back but Skye couldn't calm down. The only thought swirling around her brain was that she didn't want to get sent away because of this.

"That's very generous but they were a little more expensive that what's in your piggy bank sweetie."

Skye hid her face in her hands. The let-down and somber look on her parents faces were making her heart hurt and beat wildly at the same time, "You can s-sell my toys!"

The thought of losing all of her toys was a little saddening but if it would make her parents happy again, she would do it.

Her dad's tone had been melancholic but it turned concerned, "Skye, look at us please."

It took her a few moments to work up the courage to move her hands away from her face and look up at her parents, and when she did, she started crying harder. Deep, wracking sobs worked their way up her throat and before she knew it, she was being pulled into her mom's lap and felt both of her parents hug her.

Being close to them helped calm her down a little bit. She pressed her forehead against her mom's shoulder, avoided eye contact, and brokenly whimpered, "Don't send me away, I'll get you new dishes."

"What?" Her dad sounded shocked but her mom pulled her closer, hugged her tighter, and softly said, "Oh baby, we're never sending you back. Ever. Especially not over some broken dishes."

Feeling a little better, she leaned back and glanced at her parents, "But… you love those dishes. They were a special gift."

Her dad leaned in and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "Yeah, we loved those dishes and they meant a lot to us but we love you more. We love you more than anything in the whole world."

Skye sniffled and her tears finally stopped. She looked over to her mom. She was having a tough time believing that they were telling the truth, it just didn't make sense to her, "But... you're mad at me..."

"We aren't mad baby-" Skye made a sound of protest because she had _seen_ how upset her parents had been, but her mom just gently patted her back and kept talking, "We're disappointed and a little sad that you were running around the house and weren't being careful, but you're a kid, and kids have accidents and make mistakes."

Skye just stared at her parents. Their words were slowly starting to comfort her and she felt her worries start to melt away, "So you still love me?"

Her dad made a surprised sound and her mom held her closer and said, "We'll _always_ love you. We love you every second of every single day and nothing's going to change that."

 _Finally_ , Skye believed them.

She kept one arm wound around her mom's neck and threw the other one around her dad's neck and hugged them tightly. They cuddled her close and pressed kisses to her cheeks and forehead. Skye wanted to stay like this forever until her dad accidently ran a hand over the sore spot on her head and she reflexively flinched away from the contact.

"Where'd the ice for your head go, baby?"

Skye shrugged, to be honest she didn't really care about her head right now, but her parents did. After a few seconds, she felt someone place the cold ice pack against her head again. Her parents hugged her close one more time before standing up. When her mom went to set her on the ground, Skye tightened her hold on her. She didn't want to move, she wanted to stay pressed close to her parents.

Her mom seemed to understand this because she just hugged her tighter, walked into the living room, and sat down with Skye on her lap. Her dad sat down next to her and made sure that the ice pack on her head stayed in place.

Skye was content to just sit there, surrounded by the love and affection given to her by her two favorite people in the world.

* * *

I'm so sorry for not replying to reviews from the last chapter yet! This week has been crazy and hectic but I have some free time this weekend and I will be replying! I really really appreciate everyone who takes the time out of their busy days to leave a review for me and I don't want it to seem like I don't!

Let me know what you think and thank you so much for reading! You're all lovely :) xx -Ariel


	56. Hunter Asks Skye How She Chose Her Name

**Hey guys! This one-shot was inspired by LightningSkye14's prompt: 'Hunter asks Skye where she got the idea of her name' It's short but cute :) I hope you like it!**

 **I'll be updating TiaTWS next and am finally adjusting to my new schedule so hopefully it'll be up soon :) Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Hunter?"

Trip and all of his friends were sitting in the living room, taking turns playing video games. Right now, Bobbi and Mack were sitting on the floor, sharing a bowl full of pretzels and watching Hunter and Trip play a racing game. Skye was sitting upside down on the couch. Her legs were propped up against the backrest and her head was slightly hanging over the edge of the cushion. Everyone was upside down.

Hunter continued to focus on his game but he answered her, "Yeah, love?"

She studied his upside-down profile and crossed her arms over her chest, "How come your name's Lance but everyone calls you Hunter?"

Hunter made a triumphant sound as he passed Trip in the video game before responding, "Because Lance is a lame name."

Skye kind of liked the name Lance, it reminded her of a story that her dad had read to her about a knight named Lancelot. It would be cool to be a knight.

"Why?"

Hunter cast a quick glance back at her before focusing back on his game, "I dunno, because it is."

"Why?"

Bobbi snorted in amusement and this time when Hunter looked back at her, he ended up crashing his car in the video game. Trip laughed and Hunter tossed the controller towards Bobbi and Mack. Bobbi caught it first but Mack quickly snatched it out of her hands before standing up and taking the seat that Hunter was vacating.

Hunter collapsed next to her on the couch and gave her a look, "I just don't like my first name. Besides, Hunter sounds much more impressive than Lance."

He made a face when he said 'Lance' and Skye giggled before looking up at him, "Why?"

It was fun to do this to Hunter. Usually, the only other person who would let her continually ask 'why' was her dad but it always riled Hunter up when she did this. Skye thought it was funny and Bobbi did too.

He reached over and poked her tummy and she squealed and pushed his hands away, "Not everyone gets to choose their own names."

That was true. Skye shrugged and went back to watching her brother and Mack play their game. It was silent for a few moments until Hunter poked her tummy again. Skye instinctively shied away from his finger and shot him a look.

He grinned at her, "Why'd you choose your name?"

Skye tilted her head at him, "Huh?"

"I was just thinking that if I had been able to choose my own name, what I would want it to be, and then I wondered why you chose 'Skye' as your name."

She grabbed her moon necklace and rubbed it between her fingers, "I wanted a pretty name, Mary Sue _wasn't_ a pretty name." Hunter nodded in agreement and Skye continued talking, "But I didn't know what I wanted it to be. I almost decided that I wanted my name to be 'Bella' cause I knew a lot of girls with that name and wanted to be normal but I decided not to."

Mack spoke up, "You kinda look like a 'Bella' but 'Skye' suits you better."

She looked over at him and grinned, "Thanks."

Focusing back on Hunter, she said, "Anyway, I was moved around a lot but no matter where I was, the sky was always there and it made me feel better when I looked at it. I thought about maybe being called 'Star' or 'Sun' but those names sounded a little silly, so I ended up with 'Sky' and I just put an 'e' on the end of it. Isn't it perfect?"

Hunter stared at her silently for a moment before scrunching up his forehead and slowly saying, "So… your name could be 'Star' right now? But it's not... 'cause you thought it sounded… silly?"

Skye smiled proudly, "Yep."

"You put a lot of thought into it, didn't you?" Skye could tell that Hunter was mocking her a little from his tone of voice.

She scrunched her nose up at him, crossed her arms in front of her, and defensively said, "I did think about it a lot! The sky was the only thing that was always there, no matter what foster home I was in! I didn't get to keep the toys or the clothes or _anything_ that they gave me and nothing was _mine_ but the sky always felt like my friend."

Skye turned away from Hunter and glared at the tv. Skye _liked_ her name. It didn't matter if Hunter didn't.

A soft touch on her arm had her looking back up at Hunter. He had a guilty look on his face, "I didn't mean to upset you Princess. I love your name."

She studied him seriously and decided that he was telling the truth. She cracked a grin, "Okay, thanks."

He smiled back and her and she went back to watching Trip lose to Mack. It was quiet for another minute or two before Skye spoke up again, "Hunter?"

"Yeah?"

"If you could have chosen your name, what would it be?"

She watched as Hunter seriously considered this. He stared off into the distance and then nodded before turning to her, "My name would be Dragonslayer."

Skye dissolved into a fit of giggles and Hunter laughed with her. She turned back to the TV in time to see Mack beat her brother.

She was starting to feel a little light-headed and her toes were tingling from sitting upside down for so long. Wiggling her toes in an attempt to get the tingly feeling to go away, she said, "Hunter?"

He looked down at her, "Yeah?"

"My head feels kinda funny."

He considered her, "That's 'cause all the blood in your body has moved into your head."

Skye's eyes widened at that and she imagined all of her blood gathering in her head.

Bobbi stood up, walked over to them, grabbed Skye, and hauled her into her arms. Skye squealed as Bobbi swung her up and onto her shoulders, "Wanna go to the playground Skye? I'm sick of watching your brother lose."

Skye nodded eagerly, "Yeah!"

Her brother tossed his game controller onto the chair next to him and stood up, "I'm sick of losing, let's go."

* * *

idk why but I feel like little Skye would really enjoy annoying Hunter. Thank you so much for reading, you guys are all lovely and amazing! xx -Ariel


	57. Skye's Being Bullied

**Hey guys! This is a combination of two prompts! One was sent in my MiniM236 and was 'maybe Skye could be getting bullied at school and is scared to tell anyone, so Trip, Nat and the rest of their friends find out and stand up for her," and the other was sent in by LightningSkye14 and goes along the lines of Jonathan (from Ch. 1 of YCTM) is picking on Skye again and everyone can kind of tell that something's wrong and do something about it. I hope you guys like it!**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Hey Skye, wanna pick the movie?"

Everyone had noticed that Skye hadn't been acting like herself lately. For the past week or two, Skye hadn't been her usual, cheerful, happy self. She had been withdrawn, less talkative, and didn't smile as much as she normally did. Natasha had been trying to figure out what was wrong, so had everyone else, but Skye wouldn't say. Her parents had even called Skye's teacher to see if anything had happened at school but no one could figure out what was going on with her little sister.

Skye looked at her and shook her head before pulling Alice closer to her chest and grabbing her moon necklace. She glanced at Trip and her brother gave her a concerned look.

Bobbi, who was sitting next to Skye on the couch, reached over and smoothed a hand over the little girl's hair, "You okay Princess?"

Skye nodded, leaned into Bobbi's side, and wrapped her arms around the blonde's waist. Bobbi pulled Skye close and let the little girl snuggle into her side.

This was something else that was worrying Nat. Usually, Skye was a pretty cuddly person. Her little sister liked to hug, cuddle, and give and receive a bunch of affection. That was why it had taken her a little longer to realize that Skye was being _extra_ touchy-feely lately. When Skye wasn't zoning out or deep in thought, she was plastered against someone's side, usually her mom or dad's, but she was _always_ pressed close to someone and seeking little reassurances that she was loved.

It was disconcerting, to say the least.

Bucky and Steve shared a look and Hunter reached across Bobbi so that he could gently pat Skye's knee, "You sure, love?"

Skye stayed silent and nodded again.

Clint glanced at her and held up the remote, "We can watch Tangled, if you want. I'll even sing the songs with you."

Letting out a breath, Skye stood up and shook her head, "I'm going to go find mommy."

Everyone watched Skye run out of the room and up the staircase. Clint turned to her, "Can't believe she said no to Tangled."

Trip was still staring worriedly at the staircase, where Skye had disappeared, and said, "I don't like seeing her like this."

Steve leaned further against the back of the couch and asked her, "Has she said anything about what's going on?"

Nat let out a deep breath and shook her head, "No, she hasn't said anything."

Natasha didn't like how Skye was acting, she was worried and didn't like seeing her little sister so out of sorts.

Standing up, she brushed her hands over her jeans and squared her shoulders, "I'm gonna go find out what's up."

She found Skye in her parent's room. Her dad was folding clothes and her mom was lying on her back, reading a book. Skye was lying on top of her mom's tummy, playing with the locket that was sitting around May's neck. Her mom was holding her book with one hand while the other hand was methodically combing through Skye's hair.

"маленькая звезда, can I talk to you for a minute?" She motioned Skye towards her and watched as her little sister considered it for a moment before hauling herself off of their mom. When Skye got closer, she raised her arms up and Nat lifted her up and hugged her close, hoping to let her little sister know that she was here for her.

She brought Skye into her room, sat on her bed, and settled Skye on her lap. It was silent for a moment and Natasha let Skye grab onto one of her hands and play with her fingers before saying, "What's going on with you, маленькая звезда? You're not acting like yourself and I'm worried."

Skye stopped playing with her fingers for a moment before continuing, "Nothing's wrong Nattie."

Her little sister's voice was _too_ casual for Nat to believe her.

Natasha pulled her hand out of Skye's grasp, gently grabbed her chin, and prodded Skye to look up at her, "I know something's wrong, please tell me. I can help."

Skye stayed silent and leaned up a little so that she could wrap her tiny arms around Nat's neck in a tight hug. Natasha hugged her back and her concern grew. She didn't know what was going on with Skye and it was worrying her.

She rubbed circles onto Skye's back and pressed a kiss to the side of her little sister's head, "Sisters tell each other everything."

Skye's chin dug into her shoulder and she heard her little sister take a deep breath and let it out before shakingly saying, "There was this boy at the orphanage who always used to pick on me. I dunno why, he just really didn't like me, and he was really mean."

Nat nodded and kept rubbing soothing circles onto Skye's back, silently encouraging her to continue.

"He must've gotten fostered by a family nearby cause now he goes to the middle school down the street from my school, and…"

Skye stopped talking and pressed her face against Nat's neck.

"Is he being mean to you again?" Natasha hoped this wasn't the case, she hoped her baby sister wasn't being bullied, but she knew the answer before Skye even spoke up.

Skye squished herself impossibly closer, "He said… he said that mommy and daddy only adopted me because they felt sorry for me. He said that you guys are gonna bring me back to the orphanage because there's no way that you all _really_ love me."

Natasha felt rage flash through her. How could some kid say such mean things to sweet, little Skye? _No one_ talked to her sister like that. She wasn't about to let some kid say such ridiculous things to Skye, especially when they were affecting her like this.

"None of that is true маленькая звезда, you know we all love you very much."

Skye sniffled and nodded against her, "I know, it's just… it's not fun to hear everyday."

Nat hugged Skye tightly and pressed a kiss to the side of her head, "Don't worry Skye, I'll take care of this."

Skye leaned back and looked up at her, "What're you gonna do?"

She gave her little sister a tiny smile and a reassuring kiss on the cheek, "Nothing bad, don't worry. I've got your back."

* * *

Skye hated going to school now.

It made her sad that she didn't like going to school anymore because before Jonathan, she _loved_ school. She loved learning new things and loved when Ms. Hill read to her and loved that all of her best friends were here… but she didn't like going to school anymore.

The whole school day, she would worry about what would happen after school got out, because the middle school right down the street got out at the same time that she did and now that Jonathan knew that she went to school here, he always seemed to be waiting for her.

He always waited until after Jemma and Leo left her side and before her mom picked her up. Jonathan would say really mean, nasty things to her, things that made her feel like crying, and then leave before anyone saw.

She had been worried about this moment all day, and as she waved goodbye to Jemma and Leo and saw them climb into their cars, she braced herself and turned to see Jonathan strutting her way.

She knew it would still be a couple of minutes until her mom showed up to take her home but she still casted a hopeful glance towards the parking lot just in case she got here earlier.

Her mom wasn't there.

Nervously, Skye wrapped her hands around her backpack straps and tried to make it seem like she hadn't seen Jonathan walking towards her. Maybe he would just walk right by her.

That was too much to hope for because as soon as Jonathan was close enough, he started taunting her, "Well look who it is. It's Mary Sue Poots everyone!"

A couple of people turned and looked at her and Skye felt her cheeks heat up a little. Straightening up, she angrily said, "That's not my name and you know it."

If anything could get her riled up, it was people calling her by her terrible old name. She was _Skye Coulson_ now and she was _very_ proud of her new name.

Jonathan smirked at her, "You know, you're going to have to give your new name back once the poor family that adopted you realize how terrible you are and take you back to St. Agnes'."

Tears pooled in her eyes but Skye refused to let them fall. She wasn't going to cry in front of Jonathan.

Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she said, "My mommy and daddy told me that if I don't have anything nice to say, then I shouldn't say anything at all… but they aren't here and you're stupid!"

Jonathan just laughed at her, "Is that the best you've got, _Mary_."

Skye jumped in surprise when a new voice from behind her came out of nowhere, "Her name's not Mary, kid."

Turning around, she saw Trip, Hunter, Bobbi, Natasha, and Clint standing behind her. All of them had their arms crossed over their chests and were glaring at Jonathan.

Hunter spoke up, "It's Skye."

"But she already told you that, didn't she? You just thought it'd be funny to call her by the wrong name." If it was possible, Bobbi's glare grew even scarier. Skye was happy that Bobbi was talking to Jonathan and not her because if the blonde ever gave her that look, she's pretty sure she would just immediately start crying.

Skye turned back around to see that Jonathan's eyes had widened a little bit and that his mouth was firmly shut. Now he wasn't going to say anything?

Natasha took a step forward so that she was standing right next Skye and leaned down a little so that her face was closer to Jonathan's. The look on her big sister's face even had Skye shrinking back a little.

"So, you're the one who's been picking on my little sister?"

Jonathan stayed silent and apparently that was the wrong thing to do because Natasha leaned even closer to him, "Well?

Finally, Jonathan stuttered out a response, "Y-yeah."

Trip stepped forward and put a hand on Skye's shoulder before saying, "What makes you think it's okay to pick on Skye? Did you think you'd get away with it?"

Jonathan vehemently shook his head but they ignored him and Clint spoke up, "Skye is very important to us and we don't let _anyone_ pick on her. You know what happens when someone hurts her feelings?"

Skye watched as Jonathan uncertainly shook his head.

Nattie took another step forward so that she was standing right in front of Jonathan and quietly said, "We get _mad_."

Jonathan stumbled back a step and nervously said, "I'm s-sorry!"

Bobbi shook her head, "Don't say sorry to us, say sorry to Skye."

Finally, Jonathan looked at her and Skye couldn't help but feel a little satisfaction at how rattled her looked. He took a step back and shakingly said, "I'm sorry, I'll leave you alone."

With that, Jonathan ran away and Hunter yelled after him, "Don't let us catch you near her again!"

Now that Jonathan was gone, Skye could finally _think_ about what had happened, and she didn't know how to feel. She was glad that her siblings and friends had been able to make Jonathan stop being mean, but felt embarrassed that they had seen her get made fun of.

Nattie crouched in front of her, "Are you okay, маленькая звезда?"

Skye nodded and looked back to where Jonathan had disappeared, "Were you gonna hurt him?"

Nattie scoffed, "Of course not, he's a little kid."

She felt Clint wrap an arm around her shoulders and heard him say, "We just wanted to scare him a little bit. You know, let him know that if he's got a problem with you, then he'll have to take it up with us."

Bobbi, Hunter, Trip, and Nattie nodded and Skye suddenly felt overwhelmed. She had all of these people here who loved her and wanted to keep her safe and she'd never had that before. She felt tears start to well up in her eyes.

Nattie was still crouching down in front of her and when Skye ran into her and wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug, it knocked her sister off balance and they both toppled to the ground.

She didn't care that they were getting dirt all over themselves, she just pushed her face against her sister's chest and tried not to cry, "Thank you."

She felt Natasha hug her back, "No problem, little monkey. We're all on your side and we'll _always_ have your back."

After hugging Natasha tightly for a few more seconds, Skye felt her overwhelming emotions start to fade and she stood up and pulled Nattie up with her. She grinned wrily and laughed a little, "Did you see his face? You really scared him Bobbi."

Bobbi smiled proudly, "Yeah I did. Tasha was pretty scary too, huh?"

Skye's grin widened and she nodded enthusiastically. Hunter poked her arm, "I was scary too, wasn't I?"

Skye considered him jokingly and Bobbi snorted before patting him on the chest, "Sure babe, you were very scary."

Hunter threw his hands up indignantly, "Hey! I was-"

Hunter was cut off by her mom's voice, who sounded worried and a little upset, "What are you guys doing here? Your school doesn't get out for another hour."

All of the bigger kids looked guilty but Skye didn't notice. She let go of her sister's hand, ran towards her mom, and squealed when May hoisted her up and settled her on her hip, "Mommy! Nattie and Trip and Bobbi and Hunter and Clint all came here and helped me take care of Jonathan! They were very scary, even Hunter."

She heard Hunter mumble under his breath and looked over to the group of teens, all of them looking very guilting and avoiding eye contact with her mom.

Skye wondered if maybe she should have stayed quiet about everyone being scary because her mom did _not_ have a happy look on her face. May looked slightly confused and Nattie was the only one who was brave enough to finally look up at their mom, "It's a long story, mom."

May did not look pleased, "I'm sure it is. It better be a good one too."

Natasha's lips twitched into a tiny grin and Skye smiled back at her. She knew that even though they might get in trouble with May, her sister didn't regret anything.

* * *

What'd you guys think? I think it's super fun to write protective Natasha :)

Sorry about the slow updates! I've been having an existential crisis about my intended major and am wigging out a little bit lol. This chapter was super fun to write and i loved the prompts (thank you MiniM236 and LightningSkye14) so I hope you guys liked it :) xx -Ariel


	58. Skye's Being Bullied Part 2

**Hey guys! This is just a little, short, fluffy companion piece to the last chapter. LightningSkye14 sent in 'Steve finds out what they (Trip, Hunter, Bobbi, Natasha, Clint) did the next day and lectures them for a bit but when he sees how happy Skye is, he drops it, but tells them not to threaten any more little kids.' Also there are small appearances by Mel and Phil and their reactions to the situation. I hope you guys like it :)**

 **Don't forget to head over to the poll on my profile page and vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

Natasha tried not to laugh as Steve's eyes bulged, "You guys did _what_?"

She shrugged noncommittally and handed Skye the red crayon that she was searching for. Her little sister gave her a smile and went back to focusing on her superhero coloring book. She looked back up at Steve, "We just had a little chat with the kid."

Skye stayed focused on her picture but Nat could hear the smile in her voice when she said, "It was _awesome_. They scared Jonathan away!"

Bucky's lips twitched up into a small grin and Steve crossed his arms over his chest, "You can't just go around scaring little kids! There are better ways to handle the situation."

Clint sighed and stretched out so that he could whisper something into Skye's ear. Her little sister giggled, looked at Steve, and giggled some more.

Steve gave them a disapproving look and Natasha threw a purple crayon at him, "When did you turn into my father? You've got the whole 'I'm not upset, I'm just disappointed' look and everything going on."

Bobbi, Hunter, and Trip laughed and Steve uncrossed his arms. Her dad spoke up from the dining room, "You could learn a thing or two from Steve, Nat. I knew there was a reason he's my favorite."

Natasha rolled her eyes and looked over to where her parents were going over papers at the dining room table. Her dad was trying his hardest to look like he disapproved of the whole situation but the corners of his eye were crinkled up and he had a tiny smile on his face. Her mom was looking over to where Skye was happily coloring on the ground with a soft look in her eyes.

Natasha knew that her parents couldn't _say_ that they thought that she and her friends did the right thing, it wouldn't be very good parenting if they condoned threatening small children, but she also knew that they were happy that Skye was happy again and that the only thing they had really been upset about was that they had all skipped school without permission.

When she looked back, she saw that Steve looked smug and she threw another crayon at him.

Bucky said, "Why didn't you guys tell me about your intervention? I can be very intimidating when I want to be."

Hunter responded, "'Cause we knew you'd tell America's Sweetheart over there and he would have tried to stop us."

Bucky pondered that for a moment before relenting. They all knew it was true.

Skye made a happy sound and stood up with her completed picture in hand. She skipped over to Steve and handed him the paper, "Here Stevie, I colored this for you."

Natasha watched as Steve cooed over the messily colored picture of Supergirl. Her friend pointed out his favorite parts of the picture and showered Skye with praise until her little sister was giggling uncontrollably.

Nat didn't care what Steve said. She didn't care if it was probably wrong to threaten children, especially little sixth graders, but she wouldn't go back and change anything. Skye was happy. She was smiling and laughing and back to her old self and Natasha would endure all the disappointed looks from her friends and lectures from her parents for that.

Skye skipped over to her and tugged on her hand, "Can we go to the castle playground? I wanna go on the seesaw."

Looking back over to her parents, she saw her mom nod and her and she turned back and smiled at Skye, "Sure маленькая звезда."

Skye smiled back at her and then went around the room, pulling everyone onto their feet and trying to push Hunter out the door.

Steve came over and stood by her. She didn't even glance over to him, she just said, "You can give me your disapproving look all you want, I don't regret what I did."

Her friend was quiet and when she finally looked over to him, he had a tiny grin on his face and he was looking at Skye, who was now trying to climb up Clint. Her little feet were digging into Clint's thighs and knees and it couldn't be very comfortable but her friend wasn't saying anything.

Steve glanced at her and the small smile that had been on his face slipped away as he tried to look serious, "I mean, I _guess_ what you did wasn't so bad. Just don't go around threatening kids, alright?"

Natasha would definitely take that as a win. She grinned and smacked Steve on the chest, "Okay ya big softie. We better get going or we're going to have an uprising on our hands. Skye really wants to play on that seesaw."

Steve walked ahead of her, pried Skye out of Clint's arms, and set her on top of his shoulders, "Let's go!"

* * *

Let me know what you guys thought! I really enjoyed writing this chapter, like I could totally see Steve's 'disappointed dad' look going on lol

Thanks for reading you beautiful ray's of sunshine! xx -Ariel


	59. Skye's Birthday

**Hey guys! I have been writing this same chapter for three days now and it's gotten way out of hand! My stupid writers block has been _killing_ me! Shievi, heth, Uma FicWriter, a guest, and an anon on tumblr all asked for this prompt: 'Skye's birthday'. I hope you all like it! **

**Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"Happy Birthday Skye."

It took Skye a moment to realize that the voice that had spoken hadn't come from a dream and that it belonged to her dad.

Even for her, it was pretty early. She was still cuddled up under her soft blankets and before she opened her eyes, she lazily moved her hand around until she found Alice. She groaned, rolled onto her back, and slowly opened her eyes, "S'early daddy."

She felt the bed dip down beside her and looked over to see her dad smiling down at her, "I'm sorry, I just wanted to be the first one to wish you a happy birthday."

They hadn't been able to figure out her _real_ birthday but her doctor had been able to help them narrow it down a little and in the end, Skye had been able to choose when she wanted her birthday to be. She had been super excited last night before she went to sleep, so excited that she hadn't been able to fall asleep until much later than normal, but right now, she was too tired to feel anything but sleepy yet.

Reaching out, she made grabby hands until her dad gently pulled her onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pushed her face against his neck, trying to stay warm.

Her dad rubbed her back and hugged her, "Are you excited for your party?"

Skye nodded sleepily.

She wasn't really sure what to expect from her birthday party since she had never had one before. Her parents had insisted that they throw her a party even though Skye told them that she would have been happy if all they did was have cake and spend time with each other all day. They wouldn't listen to her. Later this afternoon, her friends and most of the people in her class were coming over to celebrate her birthday. She was kind of nervous but eager to see how everything turned out.

"You want breakfast? You get to decide the menu today." She could hear the smile in her dad's voice and she nodded again.

He laughed and carried her down to the kitchen. The rest of the house was quiet but she didn't mind, she liked having some time alone with her dad in the mornings. She was slumped against him and her eyes were slowly starting to close when he patted her on the back, "What's for breakfast, sweetheart?"

"Pancakes." Her face was still squished against his neck so the word got all jumbled up but he seemed to understand her.

"Pancakes? It's your birthday Skye, we can do better than that."

She huffed, woke up a little bit more, and turned her head so that she could speak clearly, "Chocolate chip pancakes and strawberries and ice cream."

Her dad tickled her sides, "You want ice cream for breakfast?"

She giggled and tried to push his hands away, "Yeah."

He stopped tickling her and gave her a conspiratorial look, "Only if you don't tell your mommy, okay?"

"Okay." She gave him a smile and pressed her face back against his neck. It didn't take too long for breakfast to be ready, she and her dad _were_ experts at making pancakes, and she listened to him sing terribly as she slowly become more and more alert. By the time everything was set on the table, she was no longer sleepy and was laughing at her dad when his voice cracked on the especially high notes of the song he was singing.

She settled herself onto one of the chairs and grinned when her dad placed a plate full of chocolate chip pancakes and strawberries in front of her. He set a tiny bowl of ice cream next to the plate and she frowned at it. When he had said she could have ice cream for breakfast, she was hoping that she could have a little more than an itty, bitty bowl.

Her dad sat down across from her and passed her the maple syrup, "Believe me, you'll be eating more than enough junk food later today."

She sighed but smiled at him, "Thanks daddy."

He gave her a smile and said, "Happy birthday sweetheart."

Of course, she reached for the ice cream first. When the last spoonful was on its way towards her mouth, she felt someone press multiple kisses to the top of her head and heard her mom say, "Happy birthday baby."

Setting her spoon back down, she turned around in her seat and let her mom wrap her up in a tight hug and press soft kisses all over her face, "Thanks mommy."

Her mom squeezed her tight before letting her go and moving to go sit across from her by her dad, "Is that ice cream?"

Skye gave her dad a guilty look and shoved the last spoonful of ice cream into her mouth before her mom could tell her not to.

Her dad shrugged, "It's her birthday Mel, she wanted some for breakfast."

Sighing her mom didn't say anything, just pushed some extra strawberries onto Skye's plate.

* * *

"You're getting so old, маленькая звезда."

Skye, Natasha, and Trip were on their way to the park and she was getting a piggyback ride from her sister. Her parents had encouraged them to get out of the house so that they could decorate for the party and Skye was more than happy to go play on the castle playground.

Trip agreed with Natasha, "Yeah, you look older too. You look like you could get into a PG-13 movie by yourself."

Skye perked up, "Really?"

Nattie laughed, "Well, maybe you don't look _that_ old."

Huffing, Skye wrapped her arms tighter around her sister's neck and rested her chin on Nat's shoulder.

Her sister comfortingly patted her thigh, "Don't grow up too fast, you'll give mom and dad a midlife crisis. Plus, if you get too big, I won't be able to give you piggyback rides anymore."

Skye considered that. While she really wanted to be older so that she could do all the fun things that her siblings got to do, she _did_ like getting piggyback rides from her sister.

"Do you think my party's going to be fun?"

Trip gave her a look, "Oh, it's going to be fun, I wouldn't worry about that."

Nattie nodded, "Yeah, all of your friends are going to be there. It's gonna be a blast. Plus, Clint, Steve, and Bucky are stopping by to give you your present and they're suckers for cake."

Skye grinned broadly when Natasha mentioned presents and cake. She _loved_ those things.

"Okay." The playground was right in front of them and she tapped Nattie's shoulder so that she would set her down.

Reaching out, she tapped Trip's arm and ran away, yelling, "Tag! You're it!"

She made a beeline for the wooden castle structure, knowing that Trip was too tall to comfortably run around it. She heard him shout after her, "You're lucky you're the birthday girl!"

* * *

Skye loved her party and it had only been going on for a couple of minutes.

There were colorful streamers decorating the kitchen, living room, and back porch and a sign hanging above the table that she could tell Nattie had painted that happily said, "Happy Birthday Skye," in bright colors. There was fun, party music coming from the tv and a bunch of kids from her class running through the room and outside.

She had been surprised to see that her parents had rented one of those blow-up obstacle courses and bouncy house. It was _huge_ and took up half of the backyard and everyone _loved_ it.

People were still arriving and even though Skye wanted to go run around and play, she wanted to be nice and say hi to everybody.

The front door was left open so that the doorbell would stop going off, so Skye could see Jemma and Fitz walking towards her house with Jemma's mom trailing behind them. She ran out to meet them, reaching up a hand so that the tiara that stated 'Birthday Girl' in pink rhinestones that Nattie had given her didn't fall off her head.

She skidded to a stop in front of her two friends and started jumping up and down, "Hi!"

Her friends grinned at her and started jumping up and down too, "Happy birthday!"

Jemma held out the prettily wrapped present that she was holding, "Here's your present!"

Leo held his present out too, "Here's mine! It's better."

Jemma threw a dirty look towards Fitz, "No, mine's better!"

Skye's smile widened and she took the presents from them, "I bet they're both awesome!"

Her two friends huffed at each other before shaking off their little spat and smiling at her. She motioned for them to follow her, "C'mon! You _have_ to see what's in my backyard!"

After running past her mom, who took the presents from her so that she didn't have to carry them anymore, she weaved through the people chatting in her dining room so that they could go to the backyard. When her friends caught sight of the awesome obstacle course in her backyard, they gasped and Fitz tugged on her hand, "We _have_ to go play on it _right now_."

Skye uncertainly looked back towards the door, "I'm supposed to be saying hi to people."

Jemma tugged on her other hand, "C'mon Skye, it'll be fun."

Biting her lip, she cast one last look towards the front door before smiling and nodding, "Let's go!"

* * *

"Okay everybody! Grab a partner please!" Her dad's voice carried throughout the backyard and immediately there was a hectic flurry of children running around, trying to find partners. Skye lunged for Nattie and grabbed onto her hand before anyone else could. She watched Jemma hold onto Bobbi's hand and Fitz teamed up with Ward.

Once everyone was teamed up, her dad started distributing eggs and some people groaned.

Skye was confused. She tugged on her sister's hand, "What're we doing?"

Nattie was grinning, "It's an egg toss. One second, dad will explain it."

Her dad handed her an egg and she held it carefully in her hands so that it didn't break. Once every team had one egg, her dad stepped back and smiled at them, "Okay so here's how this works! You and your partner will start a step or two away from each other. When I say to toss the egg, the person with the egg will toss it to their partner. If they manage to transfer the egg to their partner without breaking it, they take a step back and go again and again until the egg breaks."

A lot of the kids in her class cheered and she could here some of her friends calling out to other people, taunting them. Natasha pointed across the lawn to where Clint and Trip were standing together, "You guys are going down!"

Skye smiled widely and nodded, "Yeah!"

"Alright everybody, spread out a little bit!"

She listened to her dad and took a step away from Bobbi, Jemma, Fitz, and Ward so that they would have more room. Once everyone was situated, her dad called out for them to do the first toss.

Nervously, she gingerly threw the egg over to her sister, who easily caught it.

Beside her, Jemma still hadn't thrown her egg to Bobbi. She could tell that her friend was nervous and tried to encourage her, "It's okay Jems, it's just a game. I'm sure you're great at it!"

Jemma let out a breath, nodded at her, and threw the egg over to Bobbi. Rather than tossing it underhand, her friend threw it overhand, but Bobbi caught it without it breaking.

Bobbi laughed, "Next time, why don't you try throwing it underhand so that it's softer. Like this." Bobbi showed Jemma how she should throw the egg and Skye saw her friend's cheeks turn pink but Jemma nodded determinedly anyways.

As far as she knew, everyone's egg was still unbroken.

This game was _fun_ and now that she knew that they were supposed to do, she wanted to _win_.

When her dad called out that the partners should take a step back and toss the egg again, she and Nattie took a step back from each other and her sister carefully threw their egg. For a moment, Skye panicked and thought that she wouldn't catch it but then she realized that her sister had gently tossed it directly into her hands. She barely had to move.

This time, some people's eggs _did_ break. One girl from her class was giggling because her partner had cracked egg on his shoes. She watched as her mom walked over to him with a damp rag and helped him clean up.

They kept on playing and it was getting intense. Clint and Trip lost on the fifth round. They were both blaming each other for breaking the egg and it was funny to listen to. Bobbi and Jemma's egg broke too and Jemma had been so upset at herself for losing the game for Bobbi that her friend had teared up a little. Bobbi had given her a hug and that had made Jemma feel better. They were both now holding hands and shouting encouragements so Nattie and her.

The only three groups left were her and Nattie, Fitz and Ward, and Steve and Lincoln.

They were in between throws and Skye looked over to Ward and Fitz and stuck her tongue out at them, "Nattie and I are gonna beat you!"

Ward shook his head, "You guys are going down!"

Lincoln shouted over to them, "You're all gonna lose!"

Her dad chuckled and got everyone's attention, "Take a step back and toss 'em!"

She stepped back and carefully positioned herself so that she could toss the egg over to her sister, who was crouched down a little and holding her hands out in front of her, ready to catch the egg. They were pretty far away from each other now and it was getting harder and harder to actually throw the egg hard enough so that it would reach Nattie.

Letting out a deep breath, she tried to aim where she was going to throw it and nervously tossed the egg.

Skye could tell as soon as she let go of the egg that she hadn't thrown it very well. It looked like it was taking a nosedive right into the ground next to her sister's feet.

She groaned and was about to accept her fate when Nattie's hand shot out and grabbed the egg, right before it it hit the ground.

It was silent for a moment while Skye processed how _awesome_ that had been but then she was jumping up and down and yelling, "Oh my god! That was so cool!"

Her sister smiled and shrugged at her like it was no big deal.

Someone was tapping her arm and saying something to her and she turned and focused on them.

Jemma was smiling widely, "You won! You won!"

Skye scrunched her nose up, "We won?"

Jemma nodded and pointed behind her, "Yeah, look!"

Turning around, she laughed at when she saw. A grumpy-looking Ward was making his way over to Fitz, who had egg yolk running down his fingers. Lincoln was laughing uncontrollably at Steve, who had pieces of broken eggshell and yolk plastered to his shirt. He was being a good sport about it though and was laughing along with Lincoln.

She felt someone grab her and haul her onto their shoulders and squealed when she realized it was Clint. He tapped her knee and shouted "And the winner is the birthday girl!"

Her friends clapped and she smiled widely and gave her sister a high five.

* * *

"Time for cake everybody!" Her dad shouted it from the backdoor and even though they were playing a super intense game of freeze-tag, no one complained about the interruption. She tugged on Jemma's hand and led her friends into the house.

Her mom was smiling at her and patted the seat at the head of the dining room table, "Birthday girl sits here."

She let go of Jemma's hand and sat down. Her mom leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

The lights dimmed down and she glanced around to see her dad walking out of the kitchen, holding a cake with seven lit candles. Everyone started singing Happy Birthday to her, some people were purposefully singing terribly, like Clint, and it made her giggle.

She wasn't sure where to look or what to do with her hands while everyone sang to her but the wide smile on her face was starting to hurt her cheeks and she felt so happy right now, like she was stuffed full of sunshine and rainbows and sparkles.

The song ended and her dad set the cake down in front of her and she climbed onto her knees so that she could get a better look. The frosting was a bright blue and all of her favorite superhero symbols decorated the cake. 'Happy 7th Birthday Skye' was written in darker blue frosting.

It was so perfect.

Everything about today was just so perfect. The games were super fun and her house was decorated prettily but most importantly, all of her friends and family were here because they wanted to celebrate her seventh birthday with her. It was such a drastic change from last year and she just felt so content and happy right now that she couldn't help but tear up a little bit.

She shoved the tears away, telling herself that she was supposed to be happy right now, and grinned up at her mom and dad.

"Make a wish, baby." Her mom motioned towards the lit candles still sitting atop her birthday cake.

Skye stared at the candles and tried to think of a wish but nothing was coming to mind. Biting her lip, she wished that every birthday would be as amazing as this one, before leaning forward and blowing out the candles.

Everyone clapped and her smile grew impossibly wider.

"Okay, who wants cake and ice cream?"

The yelling all around her made her jump a little and the fact that her beautiful superhero cake was going to be cut up made her a little sad but she was so extremely happy that she didn't care.

She watched as her dad cut off a piece of cake and her mom put some ice cream onto the plate. Her dad handed it to her and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

* * *

"Did you have fun at your party?" Her parents were cleaning up the last of the mess in the living room and Skye was 'helping' by getting rid of the rest of the leftover cake. Nattie and Trip were helping with the cake too.

Skye nodded, "It was the best party ever, I'm sad it's over."

Nattie patted her knee, "It's not entirely over, you still have to open all of your presents."

Her parents had asked her if she had wanted to open her presents in front of all of her guests but she had immediately said no. Just thinking about sitting there, opening a bunch of gifts in front of people who didn't have any gifts made her uncomfortable, so she was happy that she could open them with just her family around.

Nattie and Trip brought her presents into the living room and set them next to her on the floor. Her parents stopped cleaning and sat around her.

"Why don't you open the ones from your friends first?"

Skye nodded and grabbed the present from Gracie, a girl in her class. She got a lot of nice cards, a bunch of new books, some shirts, and craft supplies. Jemma got her a chemistry set and she was pretty sure it was just because her friend liked teaching her about science but Skye thought it would be a fun thing to do together. Leo got her a new soccer ball and some of her favorite candy. Ward and Thomas got her a bracelet-making kit and she was super excited to open that up. Her classmates gave her awesome presents and she would have to remember to thank all of them when she saw them in class on Monday.

Nattie handed her a gift, "Okay, my turn."

Her sister's preset was a small box wrapped in pretty red, glittery paper. She felt kinda bad tearing into the wrapping paper but not enough to stop her. After opening up the box, she sucked in a breath and gingerly reached forward to touch her gift.

It was a beautiful, silver-linked charm bracelet. There was a pretty silver star dangling from one of the links that had a light blue rhinestone decorating the middle of it.

Skye _loved_ it.

She reached over and threw her arms around her sister, "Thank you."

Nattie patted her back, "You're welcome. I thought that we could add to it as the years go by."

Skye smiled, nodded, and held out her beautiful bracelet, "Will you put it on for me?"

Her sister clipped the bracelet on and Skye took a moment to admire it.

Trip interrupted her by dropping a gift bag into her lap, "This one's from me."

The bag was kind of heavy and Skye set it on the ground in front of her before reaching inside and pulling out a thick book. The front was blank so she wasn't really sure what it was until she opened it up.

The first page just said 'Six Years Old' in thick, black letters.

She gave Trip an unsure look but he motioned for her to look at the rest of the book so she did.

There were five or six pages was _filled_ with pictures of her, starting from a couple weeks after she moved in with her family. She spotted the picture of her, Nattie, and her brother and sister at Nattie's dance recital, a picture of her, Jemma, and Leo playing soccer at the playground, and a picture of her smiling widely with her dad and holding the glittery dollar bill that the tooth fairy had given her for her first lost tooth.

There were a bunch of different pictures filling up the pages and everyone leaned in to look at them with her.

When she turned the page again and there were no more pictures, she saw that the next page had 'Seven Years Old' written in and the rest of the giant book was blank.

She looked over to Trip and he gave her a sheepish shrug, "This way, you can look back and see what happened throughout the year. It'll be fun to fill this year up."

Nattie smacked Trip's arm, "Aw! You big softie! I didn't know you had it in you!"

Trip pushed Nattie's hand away and shrugged again, "Well.. I mean…"

He trailed off and Skye quickly crawled over to him and gave him a giant hug, "I love it so much! Thank you Trip."

Her brother hugged her tight and cleared his throat, "I'm glad you like it."

She squeezed him tight one more time before returning to her spot. Her parents gave her a smile before her mom handed a medium sized wrapped box, "This is from us."

Tearing through the wrapping paper, she shrieked when she saw what it was, "Wow! Wow, wow, wow!"

Her dad laughed, "Do you like it?"

She stood up and jumped up and down, "Yes!"

Leaning down, she hauled the box into her arms. It was a computer-assembling kit. She looked over the box and saw that it was just like the one she had been begging her parents to let her get for the last few weeks.

"We asked a computer engineering student at the college to help you put it together. She's going to make sure you know all the parts and understand what they do."

Skye squealed.

Her mom kept talking, "And once you've assembled it, we hired a computer programming student to come help you figure out all your coding stuff."

Not only was she going to be able to _build_ her own computer, her parents had made sure that she was going to learn and understand everything about it. This was one of the best gifts she had ever gotten.

She couldn't help herself, she ran over and tackled her mom into a hug, causing both of them to fall to the ground.

Her mom chuckled and hugged her tight. She pressed her face against her mom's neck and breathed in deeply, "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome baby."

Reaching up, she pressed a kiss to her mom's cheek before scrambling over and hugging her dad, "Thank you daddy."

He hugged her back and smoothed down her hair, "You are very welcome sweetheart."

* * *

Once all of the sugar had left her system, Skye started to feel very tired.

The excitement of the day along with all of the running around she did had her feeling super sleepy and she barely managed to lift up her arms to put her pajama shirt on.

After climbing into bed, her dad tucked her into her blankets while her mom handed her Alice. She took the doll, stared at it, and sleepily mumbled, "Mommy? Am I too old for dolls now?"

Her mom shook her head, "No, you're never too old for the things that make you happy."

"Yeah," Her dad agreed. "Plus, you're seven, not eighteen. You're not too old for _anything_ yet. What're you trying to do? Make me feel old?"

Skye laughed and held Alice up so that her parents could both kiss the doll goodnight before they leaned down and kissed her goodnight.

"Did you have a good birthday?"

Nodding, she pulled Alice close to her chest and tried to keep her eyes open, "The best birthday _ever_."

"Good. Goodnight sweetheart, I love you." Her dad patted her knee and stood up.

"I love you too."

Her eyes were shutting against her will and when her mom spoke up, she sounded farther away, "G'night baby. I love you to the moon and back…"

Skye turned onto her side and tried to wake up enough to respond. "More than… the stars…"

She fell asleep before she could finish.

* * *

This took so long to write I swear I almost had a complete breakdown over this chapter lol I hope you guys liked it! :)

Don't forget to go check out the poll on my profile page and thank you so much for reading xx -Ariel


	60. Natasha Has To Take Care Of A Sick Skye

**Hey guys! So, ya girl fell down some stairs and sprained her wrist and the brace I have to wear makes it incredibly difficult to type anything out so I'm sorry for the long delay between posts! Anyways, this prompt was sent in my an Anon on tumblr and it's:** " **Would you please write a prompt were Skye is real sick with an infection and Natasha is the one who takes care of her because her parents are at a conference?"** **I know it's not typical for parents to trust a fourteen year old to take care of a six year old for a whole weekend but just pretend that it is please!**

 **Don't forget to go vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next and if you have any prompt ideas, you can send them in here or on my tumblr (URL: dorkyassassins) and I'd be happy to write them out :) Thank you so much for reading and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

It had taken Natasha a long time to convince her parents that it would be okay to let her watch Skye for the weekend while they went away to a medical professions conference out of town. The fact that Trip was away at a team bonding camping trip with the rest of the football team had made it more difficult to convince her parents that they were going to be fine without the added supervision. _Finally,_ they had relented and decided to let her babysit for the weekend but they had laid down a lot of ground rules. No leaving the house, no friends over, and absolutely no funny business were just a few.

Her parents had left Friday afternoon and Skye had seemed a little off but Natasha had just assumed that she was missing their parents and tried to distract her with pizza and lots of episodes of Cupcake Wars. It had seemed to do the trick because Nat had put a happy Skye to bed hours ago and was just getting into bed herself.

She was just closing her eyes when the sound of soft footsteps heading her way caused her to turn around and look towards the door. Skye was rubbing her eyes sleepily and slowly made her way over to the bed. When she got close enough, Nat sat up and reached out to her, "What's wrong маленькая звезда? Did you have a bad dream?"

Skye shook her head and held out her arms so it was easier for Nat to lift her onto the bed, "I don't feel good."

Natasha made a sympathetic sound and put a hand on Skye's forehead, "I don't think you have a fever. What feels bad?"

Skye put a hand over her throat and whimpered before cuddling closer.

Natasha wasn't sure what to do and tried to think about what her parents would do. "I'll go grab you some medicine okay?"

Making a noncommittal sound, Skye burrowed closer. Natasha had to peel her little sister's tiny fingers off of her pajama shirt so that she could stand up, and after making sure that Skye was comfortable in her bed, she jogged to the bathroom, grabbed the children's medicine, thoroughly read the instructions on the box, poured out the right amount of medicine, and brought it back to her room.

Skye looked tiny, curled up in a ball in the middle of her bed, and Natasha prayed that Skye wasn't actually getting sick because she wasn't sure if she would be able to properly take care of a sick six year old.

Carefully, she sat down on the side of the bed and nudged Skye, "Here you go маленькая звезда. You need to drink this."

Skye rolled over, spotted the medicine in her hand, and ducked under the covers. Natasha heard a muffled, "No!," and sighed.

"Please Skye? It'll help make you feel better."

Skye didn't move or answer her and when Nat tried to lift the blankets off of her, Skye fought back.

Deciding that this was for her own good, Natasha sighed and pulled out her trump card, "Do you want me to tell mom and dad that you didn't listen to me while they were away? They won't be very happy, will they?"

It took a couple of moments, but slowly, Skye peeled the blankets off of her and grumpily took the medicine from her. She glared at the syrupy medicine before downing it. Her face scrunched up and she held her hand out towards Natasha expectantly.

Nat had no idea what her little sister wanted.

She watched as Skye's little fingers wiggled at her and it finally clicked that she probably wanted water to help get rid of the nasty taste in her mouth.

Quickly, she ran out of the room, grabbed a glass of water, and handed it to Skye.

Her sister took a sip from the water glass and Nat caught how Skye winced when she swallowed. She really hoped that the medicine would help.

Reaching forward, she pressed her hand against Skye's forehead again and was relieved to find that she still didn't have a fever. Hopefully, the sore throat would disappear by tomorrow morning and everything would be fine.

"You want to sleep in here tonight?"

Skye nodded and snuggled back underneath the blankets. By the time Natasha curled herself around her sister and got comfortable, Skye was already asleep.

* * *

Nat knew that something was wrong with Skye the moment she woke up and realized that Skye was still sleeping beside her. Skye _always_ woke up before she did. Her sister almost never slept past seven and it was nine-thirty right now.

When she sat up and got a decent look at her sister, she knew without a doubt that the sore throat hadn't gone away overnight and that Skye was sick.

Skye's cheeks were flushed, she had damp hair sticking to her forehead, and her face did not look relaxed as she slept. Natasha wasn't sure if the best thing would be to let Skye sleep or wake her up and find out how she was feeling.

After pondering it over, she finally decided that she needed to know what was wrong with Skye so that she could help, and in order to do that, the little girl needed to be awake.

Gently, she nudged her sister's arm, "Wake up маленькая звезда."

Skye made an unhappy, sleepy, sound and moved away from her touch.

"C'mon little monkey, I need you to wake up."

Nat watched as Skye's eyes blinked open and she became more aware.

"Do you still feel bad?" Natasha asked as she placed her hand over Skye's forehead. Panic washed through her when she felt how hot her sister's skin felt.

Skye's lower lip wobbled and she sucked in a shuddering breath before she started crying. Her voice was rough and gravelly when she said, "I feel bad Nattie."

She pulled her sister into a hug, "I know маленькая звезда. What feels bad?"

Skye coughed, winced, and started crying harder, "I want mommy and daddy!"

Natasha's hands fluttered around, not exactly sure what she should be doing, before she reached over and grabbed her phone, "I know маленькая звезда, I'm going to call them, okay?"

She didn't know if Skye heard her or not because she didn't respond but she quickly called her mom and ran a hand through Skye's hair to try and calm her down.

She felt instant relief when she heard her mom's voice, "Hey Tasha, you're up early. Is everything alright?"

"Skye's sick, mom. She said her throat hurt last night so I gave her some medicine and everything was fine but this morning she has a fever and she's crying and -"

Her mom cut her off, "Calm down Nat, okay? What time did you give her the medicine?"

Natasha racked her brain and tried to remember when Skye had snuck into her room, "Around ten?"

"She's due for some more. While you get that, can you put your sister on the phone?"

Skye was still crying into her chest so she gently pushed her sister away and held the phone out to her, "It's mom."

Eagerly, Skye grabbed the phone with one hand and her tears slowed down a little bit. Nat started to slide off the bed but a little hand clutching her shirt stopped her. Turning back, she patted Skye's hand and pried it off of her shirt, "I'll be right back, I promise."

Begrudgingly, Skye let her go and held the phone against her ear, "Mommy, I feel bad."

Skye's voice faded as Nat left the room to grab some more medicine and a glass of water. When she made it back into the room, she was relieved to find that Skye had stopped crying and was quietly listening to what their mom was saying. She set the medicine down and sat beside her sister on the bed.

Skye gave the medicine a dirty look, "I don't wanna take anymore medicine."

Natasha wasn't sure if she was talking to her or their mom and she was beyond grateful when her mom must have said something to convince Skye to take it because after a couple seconds, her sister was reluctantly reaching for the syrupy medicine.

"Okay, I love you mommy." Skye set the phone down and Nat made sure that her sister actually drank the medicine before picking it up.

"Mom? What should I do?" Natasha handed Skye the glass of water and watched as she took careful sips from it. She made a mental note that Skye was still wincing whenever she swallowed.

"Skye says her throat hurts and her stomach doesn't feel good. You said she has a fever?"

"Yeah, her forehead's really hot, her cheeks are red, and she's clammy."

Skye lied back down, sniffling occasionally, and Natasha tucked the blankets around her and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Skye's skin felt hot to her cool lips and when she leaned back, she saw that's Skye's eyes were already closing.

"Okay, can you take her temperature? The thermometer should be in the bathroom."

Natasha did as she was told and Skye didn't even open her eyes as Nat stuck the thermometer into her mouth and held it there.

When it was ready, Natasha frowned at it, "100.1 degrees. That's not good, right?"

"No, that's not good. First, could you put Skye in a cool shower to help her cool down? You need to make sure she stays hydrated and try to get her to eat something. Your dad and I are heading home right now but it's still going to take a couple hours to get there. We'll be there as soon as we can. If her temperature goes up or she gets worse or something happens, call us okay?"

Natasha was panicking. Logically, she knew that there was no way her parents would be able to get here sooner but she had no idea what she was doing and she needed them here _now_. "Wait! I don't know what I'm doing mom, what if I make it worse?"

Her mom's voice turned encouraging, "You're a great big sister Tasha, I know you can handle this. Remember, when Skye gets sick, she gets fussy, so please be patient. If you set her up on the couch, the tv should help distract her. You can do this Nat."

Natasha unsurely nodded, trying to convince herself that she could handle a sick six year old, "Right, okay, I can do this."

"Of course you can. We're already heading home, please keep us updated."

Natasha could tell her mom was worried and that made two of them, "I will, I promise. Love you."

"Love you too sweetie."

After hanging up the phone, she took a deep breath, told herself that she was a responsible adult and could definitely take care of her little sister, and prodded Skye awake, "C'mon маленькая звезда, let's go cool you off."

Her sister let out a pitiful sound, "No, 'm tired."

Natasha brushed Skye's bangs away from her eyes and slowly peeled the blankets off of her, "It'll help make you feel better."

Skye stubbornly shook her head, "No."

Sighing, she decided that she was going to have to be the bad guy here in order to do what was best for Skye. Even though she knew it was for Skye's own good, she still felt guilty when Skye started crying when she lifted the little girl into her arms and carried her into the bathroom.

She set Skye down and kept an arm around the squirming girl so that she couldn't run away while she turned on the shower.

When she tried her peel off Skye's sweaty pajamas, her little sister squirmed even more and pushed her hands away, "No! I don't want to!"

"I know маленькая звезда, I'm sorry." The guilt she was feeling was starting to eat at her.

Skye wouldn't hold still long enough for Natasha to get her pajamas off of her and she could tell that all the crying was hurting Skye's throat even more. She didn't really think, she just lifted Skye into her arms and stepped into the shower so that both of them were hit by the steady stream of water.

Skye jerked in surprise and yelped before struggling even harder, "No! You're mean, I don't like you!"

She felt Skye weakly hit her with her fists and tried not to cry. She didn't like being the bad guy, she liked being the fun big sister, but Skye didn't need a fun big sister right now, she needed someone to do what was best for her and unfortunately, this was it.

To her, the water wasn't too cold, it was uncomfortable at the most, but to Skye's feverish skin, it must have been freezing. After a minute or two, Skye stopped crying and hitting her and instead, she was making pitiful whimpering sounds and was huddling close to her to try and stay warm.

Nat wasn't sure how long she was supposed to have Skye stay under the cool water but she decided to step out before Skye started shivering in earnest.

When she set her little sister down, Skye was pliant and Nat easily peeled off her wet clothes and wrapped a fluffy towel around the little girl, "Wait here, I'll go get you some dry clothes."

Skye was determinedly staring at the ground, ignoring her, and Natasha tried not to let it hurt her too badly. After grabbing a towel for herself, went into her room, quickly dried off and changed, before grabbing Skye a new pair of pajamas to change into.

When she got back into the bathroom, Skye was still wrapped up tight in her towel and staring at the ground. She could tell that her little sister was upset and she hated that she was the reason behind it. Guilt was weighing her down and she hated it.

She made sure Skye was completely dry before helping her put some dry pajamas on. Skye still wasn't looking at her but her cheeks didn't look as flushed and she hoped that the shower had helped a little.

Kneeling down in front of her little sister, she put her hands on her shoulders and prompted Skye to look at her, "I'm sorry Skye. I didn't mean to be mean to you, I'm trying to help you feel better."

Skye fidgeted, "It was cold."

"I know, I'm sorry."

Finally, Skye stopped staring at the ground and looked up at her for a moment before stepping forward and wrapping her arms around Nat's neck in a tight hug, "I don't feel good."

Natasha patted her back gently, "Why don't we go get comfy on the couch. We can watch Cupcake Wars until mom and dad get home."

Skye nodded against her so Nat stood up, picking Skye up with her, and made her way out of the room. She grabbed some supplies and made sure to stop in Skye's room to grab Alice and Rapunzel before going downstairs and gently depositing Skye onto the couch. She made sure Skye was leaning comfortably against some pillows, draped a blanket over her, and grabbed the remote so that she could turn the tv onto Cupcake Wars.

Once everything was settled, Natasha went into the kitchen and grabbed Skye a glass of water so that she wouldn't get dehydrated and a Jello cup because it was something soft to eat and wouldn't irritate Skye's throat.

When she walked back into the living room, she wasn't surprised to see that Skye's eyes were already closed and she was sleeping.

* * *

Natasha must have fallen asleep because the feeling of Skye crawling on top of her woke her up. When she opened her eyes, Skye was lying on top of her stomach with her head resting on Nat's chest.

Reaching over, she grabbed the thermometer from the coffee table and held it in front of Skye's mouth, "Open up please."

Skye did as she was told and Natasha was relieved to find that her fever hadn't gotten any worse, "How do you feel маленькая звезда?"

Skye burrowed further into her chest, "Bad."

Natasha sat up a little and wrapped an arm around Skye so that her little sister didn't fall off of her. She grabbed the glass of water and held it out to Skye, "Drink this."

Skye scrunched up her nose and when she spoke, her voice was gravelly and sounded painful "'M not thirsty."

Nat wiggled the glass in front of Skye, "I know but you need to drink this, it'll help."

Reluctantly, Skye took a couple of sips from the cup. She still winced as she swallowed and Natasha wished that she could make Skye feel completely better.

Skye handed her the glass when she was done and Natasha traded it with the Jello cup, "Eat this too. It shouldn't hurt your throat anymore than it already does."

It worried her when Skye could only force herself to eat half of the little cup but she didn't say anything about it. She lied back down and Skye made herself comfortable on top of her before making a pitiful sound, "I'm cold."

Natasha pulled a blanket over the both of them and wrapped her arms around Skye.

"I wish mommy and daddy were here." Skye sounded close to tears and Natasha gently patted her on the back, "Me too маленькая звезда."

Nat pressed a kiss to the top of Skye's head and tried to distract her little sister, "Look, a new episode is starting."

Skye focused on the show for a little while before turning away from the tv, closing her eyes, and pressing her warm face into the crook of Nat's neck. She thought for sure that Skye had fallen asleep until she heard her whisper, "I love you Nattie."

"I love you too. Get some sleep маленькая звезда."

She ran her fingers through Skye's hair until she felt her little sister go completely limp on top of her. Carefully, she fished around on the couch until she grabbed her phone and sent a text to her mom, updating her about Skye.

Her parents weren't due home for another two hours and in that time, Natasha kept Skye hydrated and comfortable. It was stressful but not too difficult because Skye slept most of the time. What _was_ difficult was that Skye was being super clingy. Her little sister wouldn't let her leave her side, she actually had to bring her into the kitchen when she went to grab a cool washcloth to put on Skye's forehead. She didn't mind too much but Skye was like a little furnace and she was uncomfortably warm all the time, so she was incredibly grateful when her parents rushed through the frontdoor.

Skye sat up and immediately made grabby hands at her parents until their dad picked her up and hugged her close while their mom pressed soft kisses all over her face.

"How're you feeling baby? Does your throat still hurt?"

Skye nodded at their mom and laid her head on their dad's shoulder, "Nattie took care of me."

Her mom turned and give her a smile, "She's a good sister, huh?"

Skye nodded again, "She's the best."

Natasha felt warmth rush through her. All of the hassle and stress from the last few hours was worth it to hear Skye say that.

Their dad patted Skye on the back, "Do you want to go lie down in our room? I'll read you a story."

She watched as Skye considered it before shaking her head and tapping their dad on the shoulder so that he would set her down.

Skye walked back to the couch and climbed back on top of her, "I wanna stay here."

Her parents glanced at each other before shrugging and sitting down around them. Natasha couldn't help but give them a smug look before pulling Skye into a tight hug.

* * *

What'd you guys think? For some reason (besides the ridiculous wrist brace) this chapter was hard to write. I hope you liked it! Thank you so much for reading! :) xx -Ariel

(sidenote: who watches the 100 and what dis you think about that last episode? I'm somewhere between incredibly angry and heartbreakingly sad.)


	61. Skye's First Time On An Airplane

**Hey guys! This chapter is a couple thousand words and took a ridiculous amount of time to type up with this stupid brace still on my wrist -_- I really hope you like it!**

 **I was chatting with someone who wants to stay anonymous on tumblr and he suggested this prompt, which is: "Skye's reaction to airports and flying".**

 **Don't forget to go vote for which one-shot you'd like to see written out next! I hope you like it and as always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

* * *

"How long are we gonna be on the airplane?"

"маленькая звезда, please go back to sleep."

Skye looked over to her sister and scrunched her nose up at her. Nattie was just cranky because the sun was still sleeping and it was really, really early. Her sister was leaning up against the car door with her head resting against the window, trying to sleep, and Trip was leaning up against her, sleeping soundly.

Facing forward again, Skye leaned forward in her booster seat and tried to get her parents' attention, "Mommy?"

Her mom stopped talking to her dad and twisted around in her seat, "Yeah baby?"

"How long are we gonna be on the airplane?"

"Not very long. Your grandma doesn't live too far away so we'll only be on the plane for a little over an hour."

Her mom gave her a tiny smile before turning her attention back to her dad.

Skye leaned back against the seat and tried contain her excitement so that her sister could go to sleep. They were going to see Grandma for a long weekend and they were _flying_ there. Skye had never been on a plane before and even the fact that her mom had pulled her out of bed way too early and that she was kind of afraid of being up in the sky wasn't going to have an impact on her overflowing enthusiasm.

She had no idea how planes flew, Leo had gotten excited when she asked him and had said a bunch of stuff she hadn't understood, but Jemma had told her that she was going to be able to see the clouds and her parents had told her that everything on the ground would look itty bitty from up in the sky and she was beyond excited to see _everything_.

* * *

Her excitement dimmed a little bit when they walked into the airport. There were a lot of people and everyone was running around.

Squeezing Alice tighter in her hand, she made sure she had a good grip on her dad's hand with her other one and nervously looked around as they made their way to a short line.

She tugged on her dad's hand, "What're we doing?"

"Checking our bags in." He gave her hand a comforting squeeze before checking his phone and guiding her forward in the line.

The line was moving pretty fast and Skye glanced around.

The people in line with them didn't seem very happy. A lot of people had annoyed looks on their faces, some were tapping their feet agitatedly, and Skye watched as a guy sighed pointedly.

She thought that flying in an airplane was going to be fun but everyone wasn't acting like it.

She stuck close to her dad until they made it to the front of the line. As they walked up to the desk, she stretched up on her tiptoes to try to peer up at the lady but the counter was too far up. The lady greeted them brightly and it was a nice contrast to the unhappy moods of everyone surrounding them.

Her dad let go of her hand and she made a sound of protest before grabbing onto his leg. There were too many people around for her to feel comfortable away from him.

Her dad was talking to the lady, handing over one of their duffel bags, and he paused to reach down and gently pry her off of him. She frowned up at him and he guided her so that she was a big step away from him, "Can you wait right here, sweetheart? I need to check in our bags."

He didn't really give her much of a choice because before she could say anything, he was turning his attention back to the lady behind the desk.

Skye fidgeted from side to side and watched as her siblings helped her dad check in their bags and her mom printed out their boarding passes. It was kind of scary standing there all by herself, surrounded by a bunch of unfriendly-looking people.

So far, she wasn't very happy with the whole experience.

 _Finally_ , her family finished their tasks and Skye took that as a sign that she could move closer to them now without getting in their way. She heard her dad thank the lady behind the desk and then her mom grabbed her hand and they were moving again.

"Are we going on the airplane now?"

Nattie shot her a sympathetic look and her mom shook her head, "Not yet baby, we need to get through security still."

Skye sighed deeply, ignored all of the rushing people around, and let her family lead her through the airport until they stopped at _another_ line. It moved pretty quickly and they showed a tired-looking man their boarding passes but after that, the line moved super slow. She could hear loud voices and tried to see what was waiting ahead of them but there were too many people in her way.

"How come there are so many lines?"

"Because there are a lot of people going places, baby." Her mom let go of her hand so that she could fix one of her braids and Skye held still so that she wouldn't mess her hair up. Once her mom was done, Skye reached up and made grabby hands until her mom picked her up and set her on her hip.

Skye wrapped her arms around her mom's neck. She felt much safer now, "Where is everyone going?"

"Lots of places." Her dad gave her a smile and continued, "Some people might even be visiting their grandma, just like you."

Skye looked around and wondered how many people were going to be seeing their grandma's soon.

In her mom's arms, she could see further than before and saw that the loud voices were coming from the people wearing uniforms. They were directing everyone and yelling out orders and even though they were indoors, they weren't using their inside-voices. Skye didn't think she liked them very much.

Skye turned away and looked over her mom's shoulder. There was a teenager standing behind them with a bored look on his face. He was staring at his phone and ignoring everything going on around him.

She whispered into her mom's ear, "Where do you think he's going?"

Her mom moved forward in the line a couple steps before quickly glancing back at the teenager and giving her a playful grin, "Hmm, I think he's going to… California. Probably Los Angeles."

Skye giggled and pointed to a family of four. The two moms looked tired and were leaning into one another. One was holding a sleeping toddler and the other was holding the hand of a girl about Skye's age, "What about them? Where are they going?"

Her mom looked back to the family and this time, her dad did too. He looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, "I think they're going to Florida so that they can go to Disney World and have fun on the beach."

Skye's smile widened. She hoped that that was true and that they had a bunch of fun there.

Looking around, Skye pointed to a young lady in front of them. She had her curly hair up in a neat ponytail and her nose was stuck in a traveling book. Skye thought she spotted a picture of the Eiffel Tower.

"What about her?"

"Oh, I bet she's definitely going overseas."

Her dad nodded in agreement with her mom, "Yeah, she's probably backpacking across Europe."

They continued to play their little game until they reached a bunch of stacked, plastic bins, a metal table, a conveyor belt. She watched as her sister placed her backpack on the conveyor belt and started to take off her shoes. Before she could say anything or ask what was going on, her mom set her on the ground and one of the guys in a blue uniform loudly called for everyone to move forward. Skye jumped at his voice and unease filled her chest. Everyone was moving so fast and people were being really loud and she had no idea what was going on.

She pulled Alice closer to her chest and reached for her mom, who was placing her bag onto the conveyor belt, "Mommy?"

Natasha and Trip had already pushed their stuff through the conveyor belt and moved over to wait to walk through one of the two giant gray rectangles. Skye wondered how they seemed to automatically know what to do.

Her mom set her shoes into a plastic bin and her dad pushed the bin onto the conveyor belt before her mom focused on her, "It's alright Skye, you can keep your shoes on. You just need to put Alice in one of these bins."

Standing on her tiptoes, Skye peered at one of the empty plastic bins. She didn't want to put Alice in it.

Clutching her doll closer to her chest, she shook her head.

Her dad ran a hand over her head and gave her a reassuring look, "Alice will be perfectly safe in there."

Skye trusted her dad… but this was _Alice_. She couldn't just put her into a dirty bin and leave her, "Will I get her back?"

"Of course sweetheart. She'll go through here and end up on the other side. See? Right over there."

Leaning over a little, Skye could see where all of the plastic bins and bags that were placed on the conveyor belts were being picked up by their owners. Breathing in deeply, she gave Alice a kiss and gingerly placed her into the bin.

Her mom patted her back and led her to the line by Nattie and Trip and Skye watched her doll disappear.

She _really_ wasn't a fan of airports so far.

She watched as Trip walked through the bigger of the two rectangles and tapped her mom's thigh, "What's that?"

"It lets them see if people are carrying anything they shouldn't be."

Skye squinted at the rectangle and watched as Trip raised his arms up and stood still until the lady in the blue uniform told him that he could move out and then Nattie took his place.

"How can it tell what you're carrying?"

"Remember when you hurt your arm and the doctor took those pictures of your bones? It's kind of like that."

Nattie left the rectangle and her dad took her place. Skye felt her heart start to beat really fast. She didn't want to go in there all by herself and she didn't want strangers to look at her body. It felt weird.

Luckily, a different lady in a blue uniform waved her and her mom over to the smaller rectangle, "You two can walk through here."

This rectangle wasn't as bulky as the other one and she had seen some people just walk right through it. Her mom put a hand on her back and gently pushed her towards the walkway. The lady was motioning for her to walk through it but she really didn't want to. Everyone was so loud and moving too fast and she would much rather just stay right next to her mom, where she knew it was safe.

She didn't move and she heard her mom call out for her dad and suddenly he was waiting for her on the other side of the rectangle. This time when her mom nudged her forward, she ran through the rectangle and crashed into her dad. Her hauled her into his arms and hugged her tight. She felt him rub comforting circles onto her back before asking, "You okay?"

Wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, she pressed her face against his neck so that she couldn't see all the people around her and tried to mute out all of the loud noises.

"I want Alice," She mumbled into his neck.

It took a moment, but when her doll was pressed into her hand, she started to relax a little.

She felt her dad start to walk but she didn't look up to see where they were going. Instead, she pretended that she had just woken up and she and her dad were making chocolate chip pancakes and he was holding her while he flipped them.

She was pretty good at pretending because the next thing she knew, her dad was sitting down and was awkwardly trying to arrange her so that she was comfortable.

"Are we on the airplane yet?" Her face felt kind of hot and she knew that her dad was probably having a hard time understanding her because she was mumbling into his neck, but she couldn't bring herself to look up yet. She was still pretending that they were in their kitchen and she didn't want to look up and see that she was actually surrounded by loud, frenzied, strangers.

A different pair of hands patted her back comfortingly, "Not yet маленькая звезда, we're just waiting to board it. Do you wanna see something cool?"

Her sister's encouraging tone was what had her finally turning her head away from her dad's neck. She kept her forehead pressed against his shoulder but managed to look over to Natasha, "What is it?"

Nattie crooked a finger at her and motioned for her to follow her, "Come and see."

From where she was sitting, she could see that there were a bunch of people sitting around them and from the corner of her eye, she could see people rushing down the walkway.

Even though she really wanted to know what her sister wanted to show her, she wasn't curious enough to leave the safety of her dad's arms. She shook her head and pressed her face back against her dad's neck.

After a moment, her dad stood up and she didn't bother looking to see where he was going. It was only a second or two before her sister was poking her on the arm, "Look Skye, isn't it cool?"

When she looked up, she blinked a few times and realized that they were standing in front of a huge wall of windows. It was still dark outside but the sun was starting to wake up and there was just enough light that Skye was able to see everything. There was a _huge_ plane sitting right in front of them. People in fluorescent orange vests were milling around it and Skye straightened up as she realized how massive the airplane actually was.

"Woah."

Nattie laughed before making an excited noise and pointing towards the left of their plane, "Oh look! A plane is going to take off."

Skye looking in the direction that her sister was pointing and squinted until she saw the dark shape of an airplane slowly making its way down a long runway. The plane stopped for a little while before it started moving again and it started going _fast_. When the wheels lifted off of the ground, Skye was sitting up straight in her dad's arms, and the further away the airplane went, the closer she leaned toward the windowpane, until her dad had to readjust his grip on her so that she didn't fall.

Reaching out, she pressed her hand against the window, closed one eye, and covered the rapidly disappearing plane with her finger. She couldn't believe that the airplane that had just been right in front of her was already so far away.

All of her worries and anxiety from earlier went to the back of her mind and she turned to her dad, a wide smile on her face, "Did you see that? That was so cool!"

She didn't really give him a chance to answer before turning back towards the window and excitedly saying, "It went up into the air so fast! When are we gonna be on our airplane, daddy? I wanna go into the sky too!"

Her dad chuckled and set her onto the ground, "We'll be in the air soon enough."

Stepping forward, she pointed to the plane that was still sitting in front of their gate, "That one's ours, right?"

Nattie put a hand on her shoulder and crouched down next to her, "Yeah, that one's ours. And we're sitting in rows fifteen and sixteen so we're probably going to be sitting right there."

Skye looking towards where her sister was pointing and hopped up and down on her toes, "Right there? By the wing?"

Her sister nodded.

"That's so cool," Skye stared at the plane in awe. Pressing her face against the window, she pretended that if she reached out, she could touch the giant airplane.

She _loved_ the airport.

* * *

"Our seats are right here, Skye." Her mom directed her into one of the many rows of seats and Skye scurried out of the narrow walkway and climbed over to the window seat. Nattie had been right about where their seats were placed, the large metal wing was right outside her small window.

Even though the airplane looked gigantic from the windows in the airport, from the inside, it was kinda small. Skye had been a little impressed with how many people were able to cram themselves into it. It smelled a little funny in here and the way she was kneeling on the seat had the seatbelt digging into her shins, but everything was _perfect_.

She was on a real airplane right now. She had _always_ wanted to fly on an airplane and in just a little while, she was going to be up in the clouds.

Standing up on her seat, she put her hands on the back of it and looked to where Natasha and Trip were sitting behind her. Trip was trying to figure out how to untangle his seatbelt and Natasha was staring out her window.

Hopping up and down a little on her toes, she tried to get her sister's attention, "Nattie, guess what?"

Her sister turned to face her, "What?"

"We're on an _airplane_ right now!" Skye excitedly said. She smiled so widely that her cheeks ached a little bit and she giddily pulled Alice to her chest.

Natasha smiled back at her and leaned forward in her seat so that their faces were close together, "We're going to be up in the sky real soon. Are you excited?"

"Yes!"

Nattie chuckled and then she felt hands grab her around the waist, turn her around, and sat her down in her seat. Her mom leaned over and grabbed Skye's seatbelt and clicked it into place before saying, "We're getting ready to take off, baby. It's time to sit down."

Skye looked around and saw that all of the passengers had found their seats. A staticy voice filled the plane and started listing off safety instructions but Skye tuned it out and turned back to her window, trying to sit still and not fidget around too much.

 _Finally_ , the plane started moving and Skye squealed excitedly.

"Skye?"

Tearing her eyes away from the window, she twisted around, "Yeah mommy?"

Her dad was trying to shove his backpack under the seat in front of him and the strap kept getting caught on something. Skye had to stop herself from laughing and instead, focused on her mom.

"Sometimes taking off can be a little scary, do you want me to tell you what's going to happen?"

Skye nodded.

"Well, we're going to stop at the end of the runway for a little bit and then the plane is going to go really fast. When we're going fast enough, we'll start to fly. It'll feel a little weird and your ears might hurt because of the pressure but everything's going to be fine."

Her dad had finally shoved his backpack under the seat in front of him and spoke up, "Yeah, it might be a little bumpy but you don't have to be afraid."

Her mom reached over and brushed her bangs away from her face. Skye was happy that her parents had thought to tell her what was going to happen. It made her feel better when she knew what to expect.

Sure enough, the plane stopped at the end of the runway and Skye turned back to her window in anticipation. She held Alice in her right hand and reached over and blindly fished around until she found her mom's hand and pulled it onto her lap.

The plane sat idly for a couple of minutes before the engines started to make really loud noises and the plane rushed forward. Skye squeezed her mom's hand and stared intently out the window at the runway flashing by. They kept going faster and faster until Skye felt the plane bounce a couple of times and then they were in the air.

Ignoring the growing pressure in her head, she pressed her face against the window and stared, slack jawed, as they got farther and farther from the ground. Buildings were now as small as legos and getting smaller and she was watching the itty bitty cars drive around when her view was obstructed by white and she was elated to realize that they were flying through a cloud.

She tugged on her mom's hand but kept her eyes on the window, "Mommy! We're in a cloud!"

As soon as the words came out of her mouth, they exited the fluffy cloud and Skye made a sound of protest. She was a little sad about not being in the cloud anymore but her disappointment vanished when she got a look at the new view.

Clouds were _everywhere_ and peeking up over them was the sun. Rays of light were filtering through some of the fluffy clouds and the sky was orangey red. It was the most beautiful thing Skye had ever seen.

Sighing happily, she focused on all of the little details so that maybe, she would be able to remember this for the rest of her life.

"It's so beautiful," She whispered to no one in particular.

She wanted to make sure that everyone would be able to see this amazing sight so she turned around to insist that her parents take a look, only to find out that they were already looking. But instead of taking in the incredible view, they were watching her with content smiles on their faces.

Skye gave them a grin and prompted them to stop looking at her and to take in the sight of the clouds and the sun and the sky instead, "Look! Isn't it amazing?"

Her mom gave her hand a gentle squeeze, "It definitely is."

She had a feeling that her mom wasn't talking about the incredible view outside their window but she didn't ask what she meant. Instead, she made sure that her mom and dad were both looking out the window before turning back around.

The sky was now more of a yellowish orange and the red was fading but it was still breathtaking. She wished that she could stay up here forever but for now, she was content to share this experience with the people she loved the most.

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Let me know what you thought! And thank you so much for reading :) xx -Ariel


	62. Natasha's Past

**Hey guys! Only one more week with this stupid wrist brace, it's _killing_ me! This one-shot has some Natasha backstory. I hope you like it :)**

 **Don't forget to go vote on the pole and thank you so much for reading! As always, I own nothing (I wish I did) and all mistakes are my own xx**

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"Nattie, will you tell me a story?"

Rolling onto her side, Natasha gave her sister a smile, "What kind of story?"

Skye shrugged and snuggled into her side, "Tell me your story."

" _My_ story?"

"Yeah, tell me about your first day here."

Natasha blew out a breath and stared up at the ceiling. It was a lazy Saturday morning and at some point in the night, Skye had snuck into her bed. Rather than going downstairs to help their dad with breakfast, Skye had stayed cuddled close to her and Nat was a little smug about that. She didn't know if she wanted to ruin the moment by telling Skye about the day she moved in with her family.

Wrapping an arm around her little sister's shoulders, she tried to compromise, "How about a superhero story?"

Skye stubbornly shook her head, "No."

She watched as her little sister lifted her chin a little and crossed her arms and Natasha knew that Skye wasn't going to give up until she either told her the story or flat out refused, and she didn't want to ruin their relaxed morning together.

Sighing, she relented, "Okay."

Skye looked surprised for a moment, "Really?"

Cracking a grin, she nodded, "Really."

Sitting up a little, Skye fidgeted around for a few moments before settling down and looking at her expectantly.

Natasha leaned up against her headboard and thought about how she should go about doing this.

"So, I was ten when my social worker dropped me off here."

Skye leaned towards her, "Where were you before?"

Natasha hesitated before saying, "I stayed with a different foster family for a little while but it didn't work out. I barely understood English back then and it was hard to communicate." Natasha left out the fact that the real reason she had been kicked out of that home was because she put her "brother" in the hospital for trying to sneak into her room one night. She wasn't exactly lying either, the language barrier was a constant frustration for her old foster parents. Natasha couldn't have cared less about what they were saying to her but she had a feeling that, although they hadn't understood Russian, they knew that whenever she spoke, she was hurling insults at them.

"Anyways, the social worker just dropped me off and I wasn't sure what to expect but I completely did not expect Wanda and Pietro to come running out the front door, right towards me."

Skye giggled, "Where were mommy and daddy?"

"Running after the twins, trying to get them to calm down. Apparently, they were very excited to get a new sister."

Skye giggled again, "Then what happened?"

"Pietro stopped right in front of me and right before he was about to introduce himself, I kicked him in the shin. Like, really hard."

It had been frightening to see two strange teenagers barreling her way. Even though they had both been smiling at her, Natasha hadn't understood what they were saying. She had wanted to shrink back or run away but she had had nowhere to go. She hadn't wanted to get back into the car with the social worker whose name she hadn't even known and she hadn't wanted to go into the house with strangers. She had been stuck and hadn't known what to do, so instead of looking weak and running, she had glared at Wanda and Pietro and done the only thing she could think of: hurt them before they hurt her.

Skye was staring at her, mouth hanging open, "Then what happened?"

"The social worker grabbed onto my arm and started yelling at me but then mom stepped in."

"Mommy doesn't like it when people yell. It's not nice." Skye was nodding along with the story.

Nat laughed a little, "It wasn't very nice to kick Pietro in the shin either."

Skye considered that, "But you were scared, right?"

"Right, but I wasn't very nice to anyone for the first few weeks I lived here. Actually, I was a nightmare."

Reaching over, Skye gently patted her arm, "You were scared, mommy and daddy knew that."

Natasha gave her sister a smile, "Thanks маленькая звезда. Well, the social worker finally left and then it was just me and four people I barely knew and they were all talking in a language I didn't really understand. Finally, I just got tired of trying to understand what they were saying so I took my bag and walked into the house."

Skye pressed closer into her side and she kept telling the story, "This house was way nicer than my old foster family's house."

Her sister perked up, "I know, right? This is the prettiest house I've ever lived it."

Natasha silently agreed. Their home was a giant step up from her previous homes.

Skye poked her arm, "How'd the rest of the day go?"

She tried to hide her smirk, "Not very well. Mom and dad were being so nice to me but I was terrible to them."

She thought back to all of the little snide remarks she had said to them when they were showing her around the house. It was a good thing they couldn't understand her because she had insulted their house, the pictures on the wall, the room they had given her, and even all of them,right to their faces. Even though everyone had been exceptionally kind to her, her first reaction to any new situation was to harden her heart and push everything away before it hurt her.

"How were you terrible?" Skye was looking up at her innocently and Nat tried to think of a part of that day that she could tell her little sister that wasn't too bad. She couldn't come up with anything that would be appropriate for Skye to hear. "I didn't say very nice things to them."

Skye gave her a look, "How did you like your room?"

She smiled a little, "I loved my room."

"I loved my new room too," Skye sighed happily.

"But I pretended like I didn't."

Her sister gave her a bewildered look, "Why?"

"Because I thought I was going to be leaving here soon and didn't want to get attached to it."

Natasha remembered when her mom and dad had brought her upstairs and showed her her room. Back then, the walls had been a light, seafoam green color but all of her furniture had stayed the same. The room was clean and bright and there had been some books on her shelves and some office supplies on the desk. It was the complete opposite of how she had previously been living and she had secretly loved it but she hadn't shown it. She remembered how she had crossed her arms and forced a disgusted look onto her face so that the new people she was living with wouldn't see how much she liked it, that way when she had to leave, they wouldn't think that she would miss it.

Her parents had been smiling at her and she could tell they had been waiting on her reaction, hoping that she liked her new room, but instead of giving them the positive reaction they had been hoping for, she had hurled insults at them. They couldn't understand what she was saying but it was clear that they caught her tone, and thinking about how their faces had fallen still gives her a hollow feeling in her chest, even now.

She hates herself for how mean she had been to her family back then.

Sighing, she absentmindedly ran a hand through Skye's hair and continued on, "The whole day, I was really mean to everyone. Pietro and Wanda kept trying to talk to me and make me feel welcome but I was never nice back."

She remembered how she had steadfastly ignored everything the twins had tried to communicate to her. She even remembered how she would purposefully turn away from them so that they _knew_ she was ignoring them. The twins had been amazing, looking back on it. They had given her space but not enough to make it seem like they weren't happy to have her around. Everyday she wishes that she had been kinder to them from the beginning. She wasted a lot of time being afraid when she could have been having fun with them.

Skye snuggled closer to her and comfortingly patted her arm, "But we're all a happy family now."

Cracking a small grin, she nodded, "Yeah, we are."

She remembered feeling so alone that first night when she had crawled into her new bed in her new house, surrounded by new people. She had considered sneaking out and running away but before she could make a decision, her door had cracked open and Melinda and Phil had poked their heads into her room. She ignored them of course and rolled over so that she wasn't facing them but when she heard them say goodnight, she had had to force herself not to react. Their pronunciation had been a little off and the words sounded foreign and a little strange coming from them but they had told her goodnight in _russian_.

She hadn't reacted but Melinda and Phil hadn't seemed to mind.

When she had been sure that they had left, she rolled back over and looked to her doorway, which they had left partially open. She could have run, she was more than capable of taking care of herself, but for some reason, she didn't.

She told herself it wasn't because this family seemed different, that they actually seemed to want her around, or that it had meant a _lot_ to her that Melinda and Phil had taken it upon themselves to learn to say something in her language to help make her feel more comfortable. She told herself that she was staying because her new bed was comfortable and the food at this house was pretty good.

As she had shut her eyes and tried to fall asleep that first night, she knew she was lying to herself.

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Let me know that you think!

I know I'm kind of like neglecting Trust is a Two-Way street but I've been trying to work through this ridiculous writer's block for _weeks_ now. I promise that I'll update that story next! Thank you so much for reading :) xx -Ariel


	63. Bobbi Isn't Panicking ft Skye & Jemma

**You guys... I am** **so, so sorry about the radio silence. The last few weeks have been the most stressful, hectic, and busiest weeks of my life and I had no time or energy to write and I'm so sorry! But school's finally out, finals are over, and I've found a job for the summer so everything should be calming down, thank god.**

 **This one-shot's based off of Capt Dillon's prompt: "The family and all their friends go to an amusement park and Skye, Jemma and Bobbi get separated from the group. Bobbi's flipping out trying to find the rest of the group (no cell reception.) and because she's with the two little ones who are completely oblivious. It doesn't help that both girls (especially Jemma) have hero worship for Bobbi."**

 **I haven't written in a super long time so sorry in advance if my writing's rusty! Thanks for reading :) x**

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Bobbi wasn't sure how it happened. One moment they were all walking around the amusement park, laughing and having a good time, and then the next moment, she looked back to find that all of her friends and Mr. and Mrs. Coulson had disappeared. Jemma and Skye didn't notice. The little girls were holding onto her hands and chatting happily.

She stopped and whirled around, trying to spot anyone but she couldn't see anyone through the steady stream of people walking around her. The amusement park was packed today and the crowds were thick but she still scanned all the nearby faces, hoping to recognize someone.

Skye and Jemma finally noticed that something was wrong and she felt a tug on her hand, "Why'd you stop Bobbi?"

The two little girls blinked up at her innocently and she tried to come up with something to say. She didn't want to worry them so she gave both of them a bright, fake smile and ushered them into the shade by a nearby popcorn vendor and said, "Gimme a second okay?"

Jemma and Skye looked at each other before nodding.

Grabbing her phone from her back pocket, she unlocked the screen and tried to call Hunter. When the call didn't go through, she checked the corner of her screen and wasn't really surprised to see that she had no service. She hadn't had any all day, neither had Clint since they both had the same service provider. She silently vowed to switch services as soon as she could and put her phone back into her pocket.

"Are we lost?"

"Where're mommy and daddy?"

Jemma and Skye were looking around. Skye was biting her lip and Jemma was fidgeting from foot to foot and Bobbi felt a surge of protectiveness sweep through her.

Shaking her head, she knelt down so that she was eye to eye with the girls and forced a smile onto her face, "We aren't lost, everything's fine!"

Jemma studied her critically and Skye was still looking at the crowd of people walking around them, craning her neck and searching for her friends and family.

"Where is everybody else?" Jemma put a hand on her hip and jutted her chin out a little and Bobbi couldn't help but crack a grin.

She didn't want Skye and Jemma to worry and she knew that Skye didn't like to be separated from her family, especially in an unfamiliar place surrounded by a bunch of people, so she decided to tell a little lie, "Um, they went to go get some food and then they'll meet up with us later."

Skye finally stopped looking around and stared at her, "Food?"

Bobbi nodded, "Yeah, you know, like cotton candy and giant pretzels and ice cream and stuff."

She watched as Skye perked up, "Ice cream?"

"Uh huh." She would probably regret this little lie later when she caught up with everybody and they didn't have any ice cream for Skye but it was the best she could come up with on the spot.

Smiling brightly, Skye nudged Jemma with her elbow, "I hope my daddy gets me chocolate chip!"

Jemma pouted a little, "I didn't tell them what I wanted!"

"You can just tell me what you want and I'll text it to them." Bobbi pulled out her phone and angled it away from the girls when they tried to lean over and look at her screen. She let out a disappointed breath when she saw that she still had no signal and pretended to type out a text with Skye's and Jemma's food demands.

Jemma and Skye seemed to believe her lie and didn't look worried anymore. Standing up, Bobbi looked around again, hoping to find her friends but she didn't see anyone. She felt another tug on her hand and looked down to see Skye hopping on her toes and Jemma trying to get her to move, "C'mon Bobbi! Let's go on the spinning teacups! I can spin really really fast and not throw up like Fitz."

Skye tugged on her other hand, "I can spin around really fast too Bobbi! Watch!"

Jemma and Skye let go of her so that they could both spin around in front of her. The little girls were giggling uncontrollably and trying to get her attention and Bobbi had to stop them before _she_ threw up. She put a hand on each of their shoulders and Jemma wobbled a little bit while Skye leaned into her to catch her bearings. When they both caught their breaths, they started tugging on her hands again.

She let the little girls lead her towards the line for the spinning teacups and the reality of her situation started to hit her. She was stranded in an amusement park, one of the most crowded and chaotic places to be, with no cell phone service, no idea where her friends were, and was now responsible for two little girls. She knew how scared Skye could get when she wasn't around her mom and dad and didn't know what was going on. She knew that Skye had separation anxiety and had panic attacks and Bobbi didn't want anything bad to happen to her so she put on a brave face and was determined to act like nothing was wrong even though she was totally freaking out.

While they waited in line, Bobbi checked her phone every couple of minutes, hoping to see that she had gotten a signal, but she was disappointed each time.

They went on the teacup ride and Jemma and Skye tried to impress her with how fast they could spin the giant teacup they were sitting in, which only resulted in her feeling a little nauseous and them running out of their teacup when the ride was over and promptly crashing right into each other.

They stood stood still for a couple of moments until the world stopped spinning around and when the little girls collected themselves, they both looked up at her trustingly, "Now what're we doing?"

Bobbi bit the inside of her cheek and looked around. This place was huge and she had no idea where to start looking for her friends. She thought that maybe she could head back to their car but then the girls would know that something was wrong and what if everyone was still looking for her around the park? She didn't even have the car keys.

After deciding that that was a bad idea, she checked her phone one more time and contemplated throwing it when she still saw the little red 'x' at the top corner of her phone that meant she had no signal.

"Let's just… walk around for a bit."

Skye and Jemma both nodded and didn't question her and it made her melt a little when she realized that they trusted her so much.

They both held her hands and she said, "Keep an eye out for everyone else, okay?"

Both girls nodded and they started moving. They walked around aimlessly and searched for her friends. It didn't really help that Jemma kept pulling on her hands and shirt to try to get her attention to tell her some fun fact or silly story. Normally, Bobbi would love to pay close attention to the little girl. Jemma was fun and incredibly clever and Bobbi always loved listening to what she had to say but right now, the clueless adorable little girl was just distracting her from her search and her frustration levels were rising.

Bobbi had no idea where she was going and after twenty long minutes of searching fruitlessly for her friends, Skye and Jemma were getting bored and antsy.

Jemma groaned, pulled on her shirt, reached her arms up, and made grabby hands, "My feet are tired Bobbi."

Bobbi lifted her up and set her on her hip. It was the middle of the day and the sun was blazing down on them and having Jemma's warm body so close only made Bobbi hotter but she comfortingly ran her hand through Jemma's ponytail when the little girl set her head on her shoulder.

Skye pushed sweaty strands of hair away from her face and looked around, "How come mommy and daddy aren't back yet? Nattie said that we could go on the big rollercoaster together!"

She looked around helplessly and Skye got her attention by making a distressed sound and gripping her shirt tightly, "Do you think they got lost?"

Jemma patted her shoulder, "Are they lost Bobbi?"

Both girls were looking at her like she had all the answers and Bobbi didn't know what to do.

Pulling Skye close, she comfortingly rubbed her shoulder, "I'm sure they're fine Skye."

Skye looked up at her with her big brown eyes, "Can you make sure?"

There's no way that she could ever say no to the kid. Running her fingers through Skye's hair she looked around and nodded determinedly, "Of course."

People were brushing by them and she reached out for the first person she could grab, "Excuse me-"

She jerked her hand back when the fifteen year old boy blatantly looked her up and down and smirked. Scoffing, she took a step back and shook her head, "Keep walking buddy."

He stalked off dejectedly and this time, Bobbi waited for a nice looking lady holding the hand of a young boy to walk by. She shifted her hold on Jemma and stepped in front of the lady, "Excuse me, can I use your phone? I don't have any signal here and we're worried about our friends."

The lady was silent for a moment, Bobbi could see her studying her and watched as the lady observed sleepy Jemma and anxious little Skye before making a decision and nodding, "Sure, one sec."

The lady handed her her phone and Bobbi tried not to scare her away by showing just how excited she was. Taking her own phone out, she looked up Mr. Coulson's phone number and quickly typed it into the lady's phone. As the phone rang, she tapped her foot, distractedly gave the kind stranger a smile, and continued to run a comforting hand over Skye's shoulder.

She thought she would weep with relief when she heard Mr. Coulson's voice, "Hello?"

"Hi! It's Bobbi!"

She heard Mr. Coulson let out a deep breath and say something to someone else before focusing back on her, "We've been worried sick! You're phone's going straight to voicemail. Are the girls alright?"

Mr. Coulson sounded a little accusatory and Bobbi couldn't help but feel guilty, "I don't have any reception here, I'm sorry. The girls are fine. Where are you?"

"We're near the restrooms by the ferris wheel."

Bobbi spun around in a circle and tried to spot the ferris wheel but a tall building was blocking most of her view, "Uhh-"

"Actually, you stay put and we'll come to you. Where are you guys?"

She looked for a noticeable landmark near her, "We're in front of the Tower of Terror."

"We're on our way. Thanks Bobbi." Mr. Coulson hung up and Bobbi handed the phone back to the lady and gave her a grateful smile, "Thank you so much."

The lady nodded and smiled back, "No problem."

She tapped Skye's shoulder, "They'll be here soon. See? Everything's fine."

She could visibly see Skye relax and the little girl wrapped an arm around one of her legs and leaned into her hip. She was pretty much stuck immobile with Skye wrapped around her legs and Jemma latched onto her, but she didn't mind. Skye would be reunited with her family soon and Bobbi wouldn't be solely responsible for the lives of two little girls. She loved Skye and Jemma but the last hour of her life was probably the most stressful one she'd ever had to endure.

Jemma was the first one to spot the rest of their group. She tugged on her hair to get her attention and pointed, "There they are!"

Bobbi turned awkwardly with Skye still wrapped around her leg to get a better look. She felt a giant weight lift off of her shoulders when she spotted Mr. and Mrs. Coulson and the rest of their group walking towards them.

Skye made a happy sound and let go of her leg so that she could run over and throw herself at her mom, "What took you guys so long?"

Melinda lifted Skye up and hugged her close before looking over to her and giving her a questioning look. Bobbi raised her eyebrows and shrugged, "Yeah, it took you guys _way longer_ to go get the _food_. You know, like you said you were gonna do. Because our separation was _planned_."

Jemma and Skye were giving her funny looks but thankfully everyone else seemed to understand her cover story. Melinda ran a hand down Skye's back, "Right. Well, the lines were super long."

Skye looked over to her dad, "What about the ice cream?"

Jemma sat up straighter in her arms at the mention of ice cream, "Did you forget our ice cream?"

Hunter laughed, "I could go for ice cream."

Skye pointed a finger at him, "Didn't you already have ice cream?"

He shrugged, "Seconds never hurt anybody."

Skye grinned, "I want seconds!"

"You haven't even had firsts маленькая звезда," Natasha brushed Skye's hair out of her face fondly.

"Yeah, but I want seconds after my firsts."

Jemma started to wiggle around and Bobbi set her down before the little girl ran over to Skye, "I want seconds too!"

She watched as the two little girls started to plead their cases for seconds and jumped a little when Mr. Coulson touched her arm to get her attention, "Thanks for looking after the girls. I know they can be kind of a handful."

She shrugged, "They were great. I told them a little lie though, I didn't want them to worry."

Mr. Coulson gave her an understanding look, "Thank you, that was probably for the best," He gave her a grateful grin, "C'mon, I'll get you some ice cream."

She followed after him and smiled widely when she heard Natasha bet Hunter that he'll throw up when they go on the giant roller coaster after eating their ice cream. She'd never admit it out loud, but she had actually missed their bickering.

They went to find the nearest ice cream vendor and Jemma ran back to her and grabbed her hand, "Bobbi! What ice cream flavor are you gonna get? I think I want strawberry."

Now that they were back with everyone and she wasn't freaking out, she could actually enjoy her conversation with Jemma, so she grabbed onto the little girl's hand and swung it between them, "Oh, strawberry sounds good."

Jemma gave her a bright smile she smiled back.

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Again, I'm so so so sorry about going AWOL! I really wanted to write I just couldn't! Please let me know what you thought! xx


	64. Skye Deals With Sexism

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by Phoenix Brooke and it's: "Could you do a prompt where Skye decides to play football with the boys of her school, gets hurt doing it, and her family freaks out?" I don't know if this is what you were going for but I hope you like it anyways! (Side-note: I'm assuming you meant American football and not soccer, which I don't really know that much about, so I hope this isn't too confusing!)**

 **I really hope you guys like it and thank you so much for reading! x**

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"Hey! You can't play with us!"

Skye scrunched her nose up at the group of second grade boys yelling at her and put a hand on her hip, "Why not?"

Lincoln split away from the group of boys and came over to stand by her side. He was sweaty and breathing heavily and he panted out, "Yeah, why not?"

One of the boys took a step forward and Skye could tell he was the leader. His dark hair was sticking to his forehead and he was gripping a football between his hands, "Because girls can't play football."

She heard Lincoln suck in an angry breath and saw him give her a nervous look out of the corner of her eye but she was too angry to pay him any attention. She put her other hand on her hip, raised her chin, and glared at the boy, "Says who?"

Lincoln stuck his hands out and tried to take control of the situation, "C'mon Alex, we need one more for even teams and Skye's a great player."

They boy, Alex, didn't even acknowledge Lincoln. Instead, he took another step forward and, since he was taller than her, looked down at her. Skye straightened up so that she didn't seem so short but she didn't think it worked that well.

"Says me," Alex spat out and a couple of guys from the group behind him nodded along.

Even though Skye could feel the anger inside her making her feel antsy and hot, she told herself to calm down a little and so she took a deep breath. All she wanted to do was play football. The group of boys had been taking the only football from the box of sports equipment at school every day for the last week and she had finally worked up the nerve to join in but before she could even step onto their make-shift field, they had stopped her.

Skye heard her dad's voice in her head telling her to try to understand their situation before reacting, so she fidgeted from side to side and forced calmness into her voice, "What do you mean girls can't play football?"

"Skye-" She shook her head to cut Lincoln off and ignored him.

Alex laughed and gave her a look that clearly said that he thought she was dumb, "What I _mean_ is that girls can't play football. Why don't you go play with some dollies or something."

Skye gritted her teeth. She liked to play with dolls _and_ she liked to play football and she didn't like being told that she couldn't do things.

She felt her face get hot and stomped her foot, "Girls can do anything boys can do."

Alex looked like he was going to laugh at her again but before he could, one of the boys from behind him nudged him and smiled at her, "C'mon Alex, recess is almost over. She can be on my team, right guys?"

The boy turned back and his friends nodded. Skye could see that this boy's team was much nicer than Alex's team and she was happy that he stuck up for her.

She gave him a small grin and Alex huffed but relented, "Whatever Robbie. Good luck, you're gonna need it with a _girl_ on your team."

Skye glared at Alex and ran over to Robbie's team with Lincoln by her side, "Thanks."

Robbie waved her off, "Alex isn't that nice but his class gets out first and they always get the football so we have to deal with him."

One of the other boys spoke up, "Yeah, we don't care if you're a girl."

She felt her anger slowly start to melt away and said hi to all the boys on her team before they all took up their positions and started to play.

It was a little different from when she played football with her brother and his friends because the bigger kids actually knew what they were doing. Skye could tell that no one really knew what they were doing here, each team was just trying to get a touchdown in any way possible, but she didn't mind because it was still a lot of fun.

The first couple of plays were easy-going and Skye was having fun getting to know her teammates but it all started to go downhill when someone from the other team ran straight into her even though she was nowhere near the ball.

The boy had ran into her so hard the she had to take a second to catch her breathe and Lincoln ran over to her to make sure she was alright before turning to the boy who had ran into her, "What're you doing? We're playing two-hand touch!"

Alex shouted over to them, "If she can't handle it, she can't play!"

Lincoln put a hand on her arm, "Maybe you shouldn't play anymore. These guys really don't like you."

Skye gave him a dirty look, "I won't let them scare me away, they're just a bunch of bullies."

Lincoln gave her a worried look but nodded, "Okay, I've got your back."

They got back into position for the next play and Skye glared at the other team. These boys were mean and she wished that Nattie and Bobbi were here to show them that girls could do _anything,_ but they weren't here so she would have to show them herself.

The play started and everyone started scrambling around. Being shorter than all of the other players was working in her favor because it was easier to dart around everyone, so she ducked around the other team, turned around, and yelled for her teammates to throw her the ball. Luckily, Robbie saw her and managed to throw the ball to her before someone on the other team touched him.

She was nervous that she wouldn't be able to catch the football because it was coming at her pretty quickly but she forced herself to focus and grabbed the ball out of the air. She fumbled it for a second but tightened her hold on the ball so that she didn't drop it. She smiled widely before darting towards the stick that signaled where the end of their makeshift field ended so that she could score a touchdown.

Without looking back, she could hear people getting closer to her but she refused to lose. She wanted to prove that she was a girl and she could play football and be good at it and she really, _really_ wanted to prove Alex wrong.

Her smile grew wider and wider the closer she got to the end of the field and when she finally made it, she only had a second to turn around and try to find Lincoln so that she could celebrate before she was barrelled over. Before she could even register what was happening, she was on the dirty ground gasping for air. It felt like there was an elbow digging into her stomach and there was a sharp, stinging pain on her forearm.

She cried out and the elbow prodding her stomach disappeared. Blinking a couple of times to push back tears and to focus, she saw all of the players from both teams crowding around her. She wasn't sure who had tackled her but she would bet anything that it was probably Alex. While everyone on her team was looking on worriedly and most of the people on Alex's team were casting nervous looks towards the teachers, Alex was staring at her triumphantly.

She glared at him and he sneered, "You should've just played with your dolls."

Lincoln crouched down beside her and gasped, "Your arm's bleeding!"

Glancing down to where the pain in her arm was, she started to feel a little woozy when she saw just how much blood was dripping down her forearm.

Lincoln helped her up and she held her arm out awkwardly to try to stop the blood from getting on her shirt. Her friend was trying to guide her over to the teachers but before Lincoln could get her to move, she straightened up, lifted her chin, and gave Alex a sour look, "How does it feel to lose against a _girl_?" She mimicked saying the word 'girl' like Alex had spat it out earlier even though it felt wrong.

Alex's face twisted up into an ugly scowl and she stuck her tongue out at him before letting Lincoln lead her towards Ms. Hill. Once all of her triumph started to fade a little bit, the pain in her arm started to make itself a little more known.

Even though she had tried really hard not to get blood on her shirt, it was light blue and had dinosaurs on it and Hunter had given it to her, she didn't quite manage and the front and side of her shirt had tiny splatters of blood. Ms. Hill took one look at her, did a doubletake, asked the teacher next to her to cover her class, and led her towards the nurse's office.

Skye was debating whether or not she should put her hand over the cut on her arm to try and stop the bleeding when Ms. Hill caught her attention, "What happened, Skye?"

"Oh, Ms. Hill! This boy, Alex, said that girls couldn't play football and he was mean but I proved him wrong! I scored a touchdown and my team won!"

Ms. Hill blew her hair out of her eyes and gave her an exasperated but fond look, "That's great Skye but I was asking about your arm honey."

"Oh, Alex tackled me and I think I cut my arm on something."

Ms. Hill opened the door to the front office and ushered her inside, "Tackle football isn't allowed at school, you know that Skye."

"We were playing two-hand touch, not tackle football, I promise!" She shuffled her feet and paused before walking into the nurse's office. She needed to make sure that Ms. Hill knew that her teammates weren't breaking any rules so they wouldn't get in trouble, "I _really_ promise Ms. Hill. I'll pinky swear!"

You can't break pinky swears.

Ms. Hill gave her a thoughtful look, "I see. Did anyone else see what happened?"

The nurse looked over to them, saw the blood on Skye's shirt, and immediately started to put some gloves on while Skye waved at her and hopped onto the little exam table.

She nodded, "Yeah, Lincoln saw and I think some of the other people that were playing too."

Her teacher turned towards the door, "I'll be right back, okay Skye?"

Nodding absentmindedly, Skye turned all her focus onto the nurse, who was carefully inspecting her arm, "Is it bad?"

The nurse pursed her lips and gave her a sympathetic look, "Well, it's not good but it isn't too bad," The nurse gently tapped the tip of her nose and gave her a smile, "You'll live."

She watched the nurse putter around for a couple of minutes before approaching her with a tray full of gauze, disinfectant, ointment, and a large bandaid. Instinctively, Skye pulled her arm closer to her and further away from the nurse, "Is it gonna hurt?"

The nurse moved her chair so that she was sittig in front of her and settled her with a serious look, "It's going to sting a little but I'll be very quick. It'll be over before you know it."

Slowly, she offered her arm to the nurse, shut her eyes, and tried not to cry when she felt the nurse start to clean out her cut. Skye decided that the nurse must have lied a little because it didn't feel like she was being very quick, actually, it felt like the stinging pain was going on and on forever and ever.

She felt a comforting hand softly squeeze her shoulder and opened her eyes to see Ms. Hill standing next to her. She leaned into her teacher's side and sniffled.

"How're you doing Skye?"

She had been alright before but now she wasn't so sure. Her arm was hurting a lot and it was just now dawning on her that a dumb boy had actually hurt her on purpose just because she was a girl. She had been made fun of for being a girl before but she had never been physically hurt like this and she was feeling a little frightened because of it. What if there were more people like Alex out there that wanted to hurt her just because she was a girl?

Ms. Hill took a look at her face and made a soothing sound, "It's okay honey, your parent's will be here soon."

She felt the nurse _finally_ finish cleaning her cut and felt her put the bandaid over it before resting her chin on Ms. Hill's hip and looking up at her, "Mommy and Daddy are coming? Am I in trouble?"

"No, you aren't in any trouble but when your parents get here, we're going to need to go talk to the principal so you can tell her what happened." Ms. Hill was quick to reassure her so Skye nodded, leaned against her, and waited for her parents to get there. Everything would be better with her mom and dad with her.

She was starting to get used to the pain in her arm so that it was fading a little when she heard hurried footsteps coming towards them and knew that it was her parents. She hopped off of the exam table, ran out of the nurse's office, and into her dad's legs. She bounced off of him slightly before wrapping her good arm around his waist and burying her face in his stomach, "I'm sorry!"

She didn't need to look up to know that the hand running through her hair was her mom's, "Ms. Hill said you didn't do anything wrong, why're you sorry baby?"

Her mom was right, and she knew that, but she couldn't help but feel guilty for making them leave work to come here, "I dunno, for getting blood on my shirt?"

Her dad gently pried her off of him and she heard her parents gasp when they took her in.

"Maria! What the hell happened?!"

"Daddy, you said a bad word." He put a hand on her head and gave her an apologetic look before staring at Ms. Hill. When Skye glanced over at her mom, she saw that she was doing the same.

Skye zoned out a little when Ms. Hill told her parents what had happened but when her teacher was done, she blinked up at her mom and dad asked, "How come Alex hurt me just 'cause I was a girl? Being a girl isn't a bad thing, right Mommy?"

She saw her mom's jaw clench and her eyes narrow a little and it was her dad who answered her, "Of course being a girl isn't a bad thing sweetheart. This boy was obviously taught to conform to societal views on gender stereotypes and it has caused him to behave offensively and misogynistically."

"Huh?" Skye wasn't sure the second part of what her dad had said but she knew that he was sticking up for her.

Ms. Hill blinked at her dad and her dad straightened up a little, "Yeah that's right. I keep up with the times, I know things, I listen to Natasha and Steve."

Ms. Hill gave them a tiny grin and waved them down the hallway, "The boy's parents are here so let's head to the principal's office."

Skye and her parents lagged behind Ms. Hill and Skye felt their hands flutter around her, making sure she was alright, before they both seemed to come to the conclusion that she was okay. She felt her mom run a comforting hand through her hair before she said, "Are you really okay Skye?"

"I'm okay, my arm just hurts a little bit."

"Good." The way her mom said the word had Skye looking up to study her. The look on her mom's face let her know that _someone_ was going to get a piece of her mom's mind and the fact that her dad had the same look on his face let her know that _someone_ was going to have to sit through a lengthy discussion about their actions. She was pretty sure that that person wasn't going to be her so she wasn't too worried, she just hoped that the person their anger was directed towards knew what was coming because they could use all the warning they could get.

They all walked into the principal's office and Skye scowled when she saw Alex sitting next to an older man, who must have been his dad, on one side of the room in front of the principal's desk. There were three chairs on the other side of the room and she and her parents sat in them while Ms. Hill moved to stand beside the principal.

It was silent for a moment before Alex's dad sighed heavily, "Why did I get pulled out of work?"

Her mom blew out a breath and raised an eyebrow, "We all got pulled out of work because your son purposefully injured my daughter."

Alex threw his hands up, "No I didn't!"

Skye huffed out a breath, "Yes you did!"

Alex's dad shook his head, "Look, if my kid says he didn't do it, he didn't do it."

Skye watched her dad give Alex and his dad an incredulous look, "Are you suggesting that my daughter hurt _herself_?"

Alex's dad gave her parent's a bored look, "Listen-"

"No, _you_ listen," Skye could tell by the tone of her mom's voice that Alex's dad was in big trouble. "Why does your son think it's alright to purposefully harm my daughter just because she's a girl? What the hell are you teaching him?"

"Hey lady, I don't go around questioning your parenting skills so don't question mine."

Skye's mom was sitting impossibly straight in her chair and when she leaned towards Alex's dad, Skye leaned back nervously. Alex's dad was in for it now.

"My parenting skills aren't in question here because my kid wasn't the one who injured someone else. Your kid, on the other hand, is th-"

"Stop accusing my son of something he didn't do." Alex's dad cut her mom off and Skye winced. She wished she could tell the man the he had just made a big, big mistake.

Her mom's voice was quiet and a little scary when she said, "Do _not_ interrupt me."

Skye tried to hide her smile when she saw that Alex and his dad leaned away from her mom.

"Now, you're son hurt my daughter because he thought that since he was a boy, he was better than my little girl. Who do you think he learned that from?" Sometimes Trip said that if looks could kill, their mom's looks could slice people in half and kill people in half the time it would have normally taken anyone else. Skye finally understood what her brother was talking about when she saw the look that her mom was leveling Alex's dad with. It was pretty scary.

Alex's dad's face tightened angrily and he slammed his hand down on the arm of the chair he was sitting in, "What're you accusing me of, lady?"

Her dad ran an agitated hand over his face, "Oh, I think you know what we're accusing you of."

Alex's dad stood up and her parent's followed after him and after that, all Skye could hear was a jumble of voices. All of the adults were talking over each other and her dad was pointing an accusing finger at Alex's dad.

Skye had never really seen her parents like this before. They were both clearly upset and normally, her mom and dad were very calm and collected when they were upset so that they could try to fix the situation, but right now, they were anything _but_ calm and collected. If Skye hadn't been so unsettled by the way her parents were acting, she might have found it a little amusing, but all she really wanted was for her mom and dad to take control and make everything better like they always did.

It was getting loud in the little office and now Ms. Hill and the principal were trying to speak up and get everyone to calm down but it wasn't working. Skye put her hands over her ears to try and drown the sound out but when that didn't work, she reached out and grabbed the back of her mom's shirt to get her attention.

Her mom looked back at her and Skye watched as some of the anger melted away from her face.

Her mom grabbed onto her dad's arm and tilted her head towards where she was sitting. Her dad abruptly stopped talking, nodded at her mom, sat back down next to her, and wrapped an arm over her shoulders. Skye leaned into his side even though it was a little awkward with the armrest between them.

After that, everything calmed down and everyone sat back down in their seats. The principal cleared her throat and everyone looked over to her, "Can we all just focus for a moment please?"

"Ms. Weaver, I know you don't allow violence or sexism at this school so what's going to happen here?" Her dad sounded much calmer than before, even though he kept shooting irritated glances towards Alex's dad.

"Of course I don't allow this type of behavior at my school Mr. Coulson. From what I've managed to gather, it seems like Alex intentionally tackled Skye and from what I've been told by students who saw what happened, it was done because Alex didn't think that Skye should be able to play football with him. Do you have anything to say for yourself Alex?"

Alex shook his head, crossed his arms, and glared pointedly at the ground.

Ms. Weaver looked disappointed in him, "Well, I can assure you Mr. and Mrs. Coulson that this'll be properly taken care of. I think suspension and a lengthy discussion on the importance of equality is in order."

Her parents nodded and Ms. Weaver continued, "You can leave early today Skye. I hope your arms feels better and I'm very sorry about all of this."

She let her parents usher her out of the room but not without throwing one last dirty look Alex's way.

It was quiet as they walked down the hallway towards the exit. Skye was happy that her parents had stuck up for her, she knew they would, but her mom and dad both looked upset. She knew them well enough to know they weren't upset at her, they were just mad about the situation.

Trying to help ease some of the tension, she tugged on her parent's hands and smiled up at them, "I beat him."

"What do you mean baby?"

Skye intertwined her pinky with her mom's, "I beat him at football even though he said that girls couldn't play it."

Her parents glanced at each other and stopped walking so she stopped too. Her dad knelt down beside her and she put a hand on his shoulder and focused on him, "Your mom and I are proud of you for sticking up for yourself sweetheart."

"Thank you." She smiled at them but it started to fade and her dad noticed, "What is it Skye?"

She bit the inside of her cheek and looked at the ground, "Alex thought he was better than me just 'cause he was a boy."

Her dad sighed heavily and reached forward to affectionately brush her bangs away from her eyes, "I know. I wish I could say that Alex is the only one who thinks that way but unfortunately, there are a lot of people who think like that."

Skye scrunched her nose up in confusion, "Why?" She didn't understand.

"I don't know sweetheart. It's a bad and dated way of thinking."

Her mom knelt down next to her and squeezed her pinky, "The important thing is that you don't listen to those people. You're amazing and funny and strong and an awesome little girl."

Skye thought about what her parents were saying and finally nodded, "I told him that girls can do anything boys can do."

Her mom leaned in to press a kiss to her cheek before standing up with her dad, "They sure can baby."

With most of the tension gone, Skye pulled her parents towards their car and skipped between them, "Wait 'til I tell Nattie about this! She'll be so proud of me!"

Her dad chuckled and helped her into the backseat of the car, "She sure will sweetheart."

* * *

What'd you guys think? Something like this actually happened to my niece at school but she ended up punching the boy who pushed her over. She was so excited to come home and tell me how she had proved a bunch of dumb boys wrong from her school lol. I can see Skye wanting to do the same thing with Natasha :)

I hope you're all having an awesome summer and thank you so much for reading! xx


	65. Skye Deals With Sexism Part 2

**Hey guys! Due to popular demand, here's a short follow-up for the last chapter. It's not long but it's pretty cute!**

 **Thanks for reading! x**

* * *

It had taken them longer to get home from school than they had thought. After stopping for ice cream and playing on the small play structure outside the shop, they had come home so Skye could get clean and change her bandage. Since it had taken them so long to get home, Skye was pleasantly surprised to see that her brother and sister were already home when they got there.

Running into the house in front of her mom and dad, she shouted out, "Trip! Nattie! Guess what happened today!"

Both of her siblings were sitting on the couch with their backs to her, pretending to be doing homework but actually watching tv.

"Hey Skye," Her brother turned around to face her, "Oh my god! What happened?"

Natasha whipped around and her eyes widened before she was jumping over the back of the couch and striding towards her, "маленькая звезда! Is that blood?"

Her sister crouched down in front of her and searched for injuries. Skye squirmed when Nattie's hand gently roamed over her belly and held out her forearm, "My owie's right here Nattie."

Making a sympathetic sound, Natasha gently held onto her arm and examined the large bandage. Skye heard her parents walk into the house behind her and her mom said, "She's alright, just messy."

Trip scoffed and kneeled down beside her, "She looks like she survived a horror movie or something. How did all that blood on your shirt come from your arm?"

Skye just shrugged and started hopping up and down on her toes a little, "I beat a dumb boy!"

Natasha raised an eyebrow and Trip looked over to their parents, "She beat up a boy?"

Pulling her arm out of her sister's grip, she bounded over to the couch and her siblings settled in beside her, "I didn't beat _up_ a boy, I _beat_ a boy!"

Her brother and sister still looked confused and she heard her dad clear his throat, "Why don't you start the story from the beginning sweetheart?"

"Right. I wanted to play football so I joined the game with all the boys but they were really mean and Alex was like 'You can't play football 'cause you're a girl!' but I did it anyways and I beat them!"

Trip rubbed his forehead, "Who's Alex?"

Skye sighed and patted his thigh, "The boy that I beat!"

Natasha chuckled, "Yeah Trip, keep up. Way to go маленькая звезда. Girls can do anything boys can do."

Squirming around excitedly, Skye gasped, "That's what I told him!"

Her dad appeared in front of her with a first aid kit in hand and Natasha glanced at the large bandage on her arm, "Where'd your owie come from?"

"Alex pushed me down after I got a touchdown. He said that I should have just played with my dolls. He wasn't nice."

She sucked in a breath when her dad peeled the old bandage off of her arm and covered it with a new one.

Natasha shared an angry look with their dad, "How old was this kid?"

"Second grade." Her dad pressed a kiss over her new bandage to help it feel better and patted the top of her head, "Bring me this shirt once you change, okay sweetheart?"

Nodding absentmindedly, she kept her focus on her sister, "Wanna know what I said to him?"

"Of course."

Smiling widely, she climbed onto her knees and wiggled around. She knew her sister was gonna like this, "I said 'How does it feel to lose to a girl?' He looked so mad!"

Trip and Natasha glanced at each other before Trip started clapping loudly and Nattie smiled widely at her and pulled her into a tight hug, "I've never been prouder."

Skye bit her lip and hugged her sister back. Today had been a little scary but she was proud of herself for standing up for herself and she felt even better knowing that her brother and sister were proud of her too.

"C'mon, let's get you out of this shirt. It's freaking me out a little," Nattie stood up with her in her arms and Skye squealed and waved bye to Trip as they walked up the stairs towards her room.

Skye twirled Nattie's bright red hair around her finger and set her chin on her shoulder, "I'm glad Lincoln and Fitz and Ward aren't like Alex."

Natasha gently patted her back, "Yeah, your friends are nice and smart. But some people think like Alex though and it really sucks."

Her sister set her down in her room and Skye tilted her head as Natasha walked over to her closet to grab a new shirt for her, "How come?"

Natasha walked back over to her, new shirt in hand, and gave her a sad, serious look, "It's just the world we live in right now and it's up to us to try and change it, to educate people and stand up for ourselves and others."

Skye nodded and held her arms over her head so her sister could pull off her dirty, bloody, shirt and put a new one on her.

"I wanna be like you and Bobbi so that no boys will mess with me."

Natasha tugged Skye's new shirt on, pressed a kiss to her cheek, and put her hands on her shoulders, "You don't need to be like me or Bobbi маленькая звезда, you just need to be like you." Nattie intertwined their pinkies, "You're pretty awesome."

Skye smiled widely and felt like she was going to burst with pride. Her big sister thought she was awesome.

Standing up quickly, Nattie pulled her phone out of her back pocket, "Speaking of Bobbi, I _have_ to tell her what happened."

Nattie collapsed onto her bed and made a disgruntled sound when she landed on top of Alice and Rapunzel. She pulled the dolls out from underneath her and Skye scrambled up onto her bed next to her and pulled her dolls close.

Her sister called Bobbi and put the phone on speaker so that Skye could hear.

"Hello?"

Skye put her face close to the phone and grinned, "Hi Bobbi!"

"Hey Princess! What's up?"

Natasha pressed her face right next to Skye's, "Bobbi, guess what my sister did today."

Skye could hear the smile in Bobbi's voice when she answered, "Tell me."

* * *

Let me know what you think! Also, a Guest asked me how people can send in prompts and you can either do that on here (through a comment or private message, either works!) or on tumblr (URL: dorkyassassins)! I LOVE new prompts so don't be shy!

Thank you so much for reading, I really appreciate all of you! :) xx


	66. Nat Introduces Skye To Her Girlfriend

**Hey guys! I hope everyone's having an awesome summer! This prompt was sent in by an Anonymous on Tumblr and it's: "could you do one where Nat brings a boyfriend or girlfriend (preferably the latter but either is fine) home and Skye threatens them to treat her sister well, please?"**

 **I _love_ this prompt and I loved writing it out, so thank you for sending it in! I hope you all like it :) Thank you for reading! x**

* * *

When Skye walked into her sister's room, she knew that something was a little off when both her mom and Nattie stopped talking. She decided to shake it off anyways. Trip's birthday was coming up and she assumed that they were planning that and didn't want her to hear anything since she wasn't that good at keeping secrets.

Skipping into the room, Skye jumped onto the bed and bounced up and down a few times before settling down partially on top of both of them. Nattie tickled her sides and Skye squealed before pushing herself off of her sister and fully onto her mom. She took a second to wrap her mom's arms around her middle before grinning and saying, "What're you talking about?"

"Dinner."

Craning her neck, she gave her mom a confused look, "But it's not even lunch yet!"

"Well, we're having someone over for dinner so we were talking about what we should make."

She crossed her fingers and hoped that Steve and Bucky were coming over. It was easy to get them to dress up and have a tea party with her and they hadn't had one in a while.

Turning around a little so that she was facing her mom, she reached up to twirl her finger through her dark hair, "Who's coming over?"

Natasha cleared her throat and nervously ran a hand through her hair, "Um, Sharon is."

Skye scrunched her face up and tried to remember why that name sounded so familiar. Before she could think of anything, her sister spoke up, "She's the girl I went to the movies with the other day, remember? You helped me do my hair."

Skye thought that "help" was probably too strong of a word to describe what she had done to Natasha's hair. She had tried to twist it into a braid but her fingers had been clumsy and Nattie's bright red hair had fallen out of the messy braid as soon as Skye had tied it off. Her sister had thanked her anyways and had easily twisted her hair up into an elegant braid in a minute flat. Skye had stared jealously until Nattie had tapped the tip of her nose and promised to teach her how to braid later.

"Oh yeah! Are you and Sharon friends now?" Now she remembered that Nattie had been mentioning Sharon for the past couple of weeks and she assumed that they were friends. Skye was excited to meet her, she loved all of her sister's friends.

Natasha glanced at their mom, who nodded, and gave her a smile, "Yeah, we've been friends for awhile now. I think you'll really like her Skye."

Sliding off of her mom's lap, Skye hopped onto the floor and pulled on her sister's hand, "Okay. Can we go to the park before lunch?"

Her sister looked a little surprised at the quick subject change and floundered for a second before letting Skye tug her up and off of her bed, "Sure маленькая звезда."

* * *

Skye was flipping through her coloring book, trying to find a picture she wanted to color in, when the doorbell rang. Quickly, she pushed herself off of the living room floor, ignoring the couple of crayons that rolled away from her, and ran towards the door, "I got it! I got it!"

"Skye, hold on!" Natasha called after her and Skye could hear her sister hurrying down the staircase behind her.

She pretended that she hadn't heard her sister and yanked the door open anyways.

The blonde standing on the porch looked like she was trying very hard not to appear nervous but Skye could tell that she was by the way she was fiddling with her fingers. Skye smiled up at her, "I like your boots! I have some just like them!"

It was true. She was wearing black combat boots, black skinny jeans, and a white, flowy tanktop with little pink flowers decorating it. Sharon gave her a surprised smile but before she could respond, Natasha was wedging herself in between Skye and the door so that she could hug Sharon and give her a kiss on the cheek before turning a disapproving eye towards her. Skye took a tiny step back and had the sense to look a little bashful.

"Skye, I told you to wait. What if she had been a crazy murderer or something?"

"But she isn't!" Skye paused and looked Sharon over once again before crossing her arms, "Wait, are you?"

Sharon looked between Skye and Natasha and held her hands out in front of her, "What? No! No, of course not!"

Skye smiled widely and stepped further into the house so that Natasha and Sharon could come inside, "See? I told you."

Nattie sighed dramatically, "That's not the point."

Skye was too busy admiring Sharon's boots to remember what they were talking about, "Wait, what's the point again?"

Sharon laughed and Natasha threw her hands up in the air, "Nevermind."

Skye tugged on her sister's shirt and stared pointedly at Sharon, hoping that her sister would introduce them. She liked being introduced to people. It made her feel important and grown-up.

"Oh, right," Natasha linked her arm around Sharon's elbow and gestured to Skye, "Skye, this is Sharon Carter. Sharon, this is my little sister, Skye."

Sharon crouched down a little so that she wasn't towering over her and stuck out her hand, "It's a pleasure to meet you Skye. I've heard tons about you."

Skye was delighted to shake Sharon's hand, it always made her feel like a big kid when she did that, and she decided that she already liked the blonde. Sharon had a face that could be intimidating if she wanted, but the way that the corners of her eyes crinkled up slightly and the small upturn of her lips made her look friendly and kind.

After shaking hands, Skye grinned, "What'd Nattie say about me?"

Sharon looked over to Natasha and her sister just looked up towards the heavens and blew her hair away from her face. Sharon breathed out a little laugh before focusing back on her, "Natasha says that you're the coolest little sister ever. That you like dolls, chocolate chip ice cream, and Cupcake Wars. She told me that you're one tough little cookie and that you guys are best friends."

Skye felt like she was practically glowing. Her big sister had said all that about her?

Her cheeks were starting to hurt a little bit from smiling so widely. Reaching forward, she grabbed onto Sharon's hand, "Do you wanna color with me? I have lots of coloring books and crayons!" The older girl looked stunned for a moment before relaxing and squeezing her hand.

"маленькая звезда, why don't we let Sharon say hi to everyone else first?"

"Oh, right," Skye bit her lip and looked hopefully up at Sharon, "But… will you color after?"

"I'd love to."

Skye smiled happily and pulled Sharon into the kitchen where the rest of her family was, "Mommy! Daddy! Trip! Sharon's here!"

She heard Nattie mutter something about her stealing her thunder behind her and heard Sharon giggle, but when she glanced behind her, both of the older girls were smiling at each other and barely paying her any attention.

She tugged on Sharon's hand and the older girl obediently followed after her. When they reached the kitchen, Skye let go of Sharon's hand in favor of wandering over to where her mom was standing by the stovetop and wrapping her arms around her mom's legs. Her dad was leaning over the kitchen counter next to Trip, trying to help him figure out some of his math homework. From the sour looks on their faces, it wasn't going too well.

Trip turned around when he heard them enter the kitchen and his face split into a wide smile when he saw Sharon, "Hey girl! It's good to see you again."

Trip gave Sharon a quick hug before returning back to the counter. Skye watched as Nattie introduced Sharon to their parent's, "Mom, dad, this is Sharon Carter."

Skye giggled a little at the look on her sister's face. She was clearly pleading with her parents not to embarrass her.

Sharon waved nervously, "It's lovely to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Coulson."

Her dad smiled, "It's great to meet you too and please, call me Phil."

"And call me Melinda. We're so happy you're here! We're making lasagna, Nat said you liked it and I hope she was right."

Sharon was looking more and more comfortable by the second, "Oh yes, I love lasagna. Do you need any help?"

Her mom gave Sharon a grin and shooed them out of the kitchen, "I'm just about done, thank you though. Dinner should be ready soon."

The three of them let her mom gingerly push them out of the kitchen and Skye happily led everyone into the living room, "Now we can color!"

* * *

Skye had started to notice that this dinner was a little different than the one's where Natasha's other friends came over. The atmosphere, while still relaxed and comfortable, was a little off. Skye thought it was because Nattie was trying to impress Sharon. From the reddish tint on Natasha's cheeks, it was kinda clear that her parent's were doing a pretty good job of good-naturedly embarrassing her.

"Sharon, you should've seen her when she was still learning English," Her dad was excitedly waving his hands around and Natasha covered her face with her hands, "She would say things with such conviction but she would always mix up her words. It was adorable."

"Dad! Stop!" Nattie peeked around her fingers and Skye giggled. Sharon was smiling widely. She had been enjoying the little trip down memory lane

Skye comfortingly patted her sister's arm and said, "Don't worry Nattie, you're really good at English now."

Natasha quickly pressed a kiss to the top of Skye's head and turned indignantly to their dad, "Thank you Skye. At least _someone's_ being nice to me tonight."

Sharon reached over and grabbed onto Nattie's hand, "Aw come on. I love hearing about young Natasha. It's good to know you were cute throughout all stages of life."

"Softie," Nattie muttered but Skye could see her tighten her hold on Sharon's hand.

Finishing her lasagna and wiping a hand over her mouth even though her mom had pushed a bunch of napkins her way, she sat up straighter in her seat and pleaded to her parent's, "Can Sharon stay and play after dinner?"

Her mom reached over, placed a napkin in Skye's hand, and motioned towards her face, "That's up to Sharon, baby, but she's welcome to stay here for as long as she wants."

Skye turned big, hopeful eyes over the blonde. Sharon was smiling brightly, "I'd love to stay and play Skye."

Skye was very, very happy with that answer, and with the way that Nattie was basically glowing, Skye could tell that her sister was too.

* * *

"Skye, can we talk to you real quick?"

Natasha and Sharon had been sneaking nervous glances towards each other for the last ten minutes and Skye was happy they finally said something about it.

"We're already talking Nattie. We've been coming up with stories for Alice, Rapunzel, and Mara, remember?"

Skye had been thrilled to show Sharon her room. She liked showing off her pretty bed, the funny pictures of her and her family and friends, and she really loved when she could get people to play dolls with her. It had been very easy to convince Nattie and Sharon to sit around her dollhouse and play with her.

"No. Well, I mean yeah, but can we talk about something else?"

Skye looked up and nodded at the nervous tone of her sister's voice.

Natasha scooted a little closer to Sharon and cleared her throat, "Well… Sharon and I… we're…" Nattie looked like she was having a hard time getting her words out so Sharon laid a hand on her arm and gave Skye a smile, "Skye, I'm Natasha's girlfriend."

Skye tilted her head in confusion, "Okay." She already knew that they were friends.

Natasha motioned for Skye to come closer so she carefully set Alice down in her dollhouse and crawled over and onto Nattie's lap. Her sister hugged her tightly for a moment before situating her so that she could see both of them, "Do you know what that means маленькая звезда?"

From Nattie's tone, Skye could tell they were talking about different things, so she cautiously shook her head.

Nattie put on her thinking face, the one where she had a little dent between her eyebrows because she was concentrating hard on something, and Skye stayed quiet so that she could think. "You know Trip's old girlfriend?"

"Amora," Skye spat out the name. She really didn't like Amora, she was very mean.

Natasha nodded and Sharon raised an eyebrow, "Trip went out with Amora?"

"She wasn't very nice." Skye pouted.

Sharon nodded sympathetically, "That's what I've heard."

Nattie tapped her thigh and Skye focused back on their conversation, "Well, Amora was Trip's girlfriend and Sharon's _my_ girlfriend."

Oh. Now Skye understood what they were trying to tell her. She sat up a little in her sister's arm and shrugged, "Okay."

Natasha looked like she didn't think that Skye understood, but she did. She liked Sharon and she seemed much nicer than Amora had been.

"Are you sure you understand Skye?"

Skye crossed her arms and pouted a little, "I'm not a dumb little kid, Nattie."

It was quiet for a moment before Sharon bursted out laughing, "I think she's got it Tasha."

Her sister let out a relieved chuckle and hugged her close, "Of course you're not a dumb little kid. I just wanted to make sure you were okay with it."

From the way that her sister was talking, Skye thought that she expected her to have been more apprehensive. She tried to think of why she wouldn't be okay with Sharon being Nattie's girlfriend and put a thoughtful finger on her chin.

She squirmed around in her sister's arms so that she was facing Sharon and gave her a onceover, "You're nice to Nattie, right?"

"Yes." Sharon still had a hint of a smile of her face but she was being serious and Skye appreciated that.

"And you're happy?"

She felt Nattie nod and Sharon said, "Very, very happy."

That was really all Skye needed to know and she hoped that she had acted the right way. She was about to go back to playing with her dolls when a thought crossed her mind.

She remembered Amora, how she had pretended to be nice in front of Trip but had actually been pretty mean. She didn't want Sharon to pretend and she didn't want her to make Nattie sad, so instead of going back to her dolls, she climbed out of her sister's lap and stood in front of Sharon with her hands on her hips, "You're not going to be mean later, are you? 'Cause if you're mean to my sister, I'll…" Skye floundered for something intimidating to say, "I'll… I'll tell your mommy and daddy!"

Sharon tried to keep a straight face, "I promise I'll never be mean to your sister Skye, and I know how important you are to her so I was hoping that we could be friends."

Letting her hands drop away from hips, Skye tried not to hop up and down on her toes, "You wanna be friends with me?"

"Yeah, I'd like that very much," Sharon uncertainly pulled Rapunzel closer to her chest and nervously glanced towards Natasha.

Skye pretended to think it over, she even tapped a finger against her lips, but she only lasted a couple of seconds before she was hopping up and down and smiling, "Okay, we can be friends! As long as you're nice to my sister."

Satisfied with their conversation, she turned away to dig through the box next to her dollhouse to try to find new clothes for Sharon to put on Rapunzel. Once she found a suitable outfit, she turned around only to see Sharon lean over to give Natasha a sweet kiss.

Not liking that they weren't paying attention to her, she crawled over and pushed the outfit between the two girls and shook it a little so they would notice her. "Sharon, play with me!"

The girls leaned away from each other and Sharon grabbed the outfit out of Skye's hand. Natasha smiled happily and reached out to pull Skye onto her lap. She giggled and let Nattie hug her close, rest her chin on Skye's shoulder, and whisper, "I'm glad you two like each other. Your opinion means a lot to me маленькая звезда."

She leaned into her sister's chest and happily watched Sharon struggle to put Rapunzel's new dress on, "Really?"

"Of course. You're my sister and my best friend," Nattie hugged her even tighter and pecked her on the cheek.

Skye felt warm and happy hearing how much she meant to her sister. She craned her neck so that she could place a sloppy kiss on Nattie's cheek and said, "I love you," before crawling off of her lap and situating herself right next to Sharon so that they could play dolls together.

"Looks like I'll be competing for your attention, Sharon."

Skye giggled and waved for Natasha to come and join them.

* * *

Please let me know what you think! I'm a huge Sharon Carter fan and a giant Nat fan and it was really fun writing them together. I think they'd be kickass girlfriends who would take over the world lol :)

Thank you so much for reading and thank you x10 to everyone who takes the time to leave me a comment! I appreciate all of them! xx


	67. Skye's First Father's Day

**Hey guys! I know this is a little late but I've been on a kickass camping trip with my dad and didn't get back 'til last night! Here's a cute lil chapter of Skye and Phil for Father's Day. I hope you like it! x**

 **If you've got a prompt for me, please send it in! (I love prompts :D ) You can leave it in a comment, Private Message it to me on here, or send it to me on tumblr (URL: dorkyassassins) but either way I'll put them on my list and write them out! :)**

* * *

Skye liked her morning routine, which was something she had never said before moving in with the Coulson's and becoming a part of their family. Natasha said that she had no idea why Skye liked to wake up at "such an ungodly hour," but she _liked_ waking up when the sun was waking up, she liked taking her dolls from her bed and putting them into their dollhouse, and she really liked not having to share the bathroom with her siblings as she got ready for the day, but her favorite part was wandering downstairs to help her dad with breakfast.

Today she really liked her morning routine because she knew that she was going to be able to be the first one to say Happy Father's Day to her dad.

After waking up and quickly putting her dolls into their little house for the day, she hastily got dressed, brushed her teeth, grabbed her dad's present from where she had hidden it under her bed, and made her way downstairs. When she walked into the kitchen, she set her dad's present onto the counter and called out, "Stop what you're doing!"

Her dad was standing in the middle of the kitchen with a mixing bowl in hand. He set the bowl down, slowly put his hands in the air, and turned to her with a smile, "Caught red-handed."

" _I'm_ supposed to be making _you_ breakfast. We went over this daddy." She put her hands on her hips and gave him a look. She had made him promise last night that he would let her make breakfast for him like they had done for her mom on Mother's Day.

"I was just getting things started," He lowered his hands and gave her a sheepish look. Skye decided to let it slide since it was Father's Day.

She pretended to be disappointed for a few moments longer before she was unable to hold back her smile. Her dad grinned back and she ran and gave him a big hug, "Happy Father's Day!"

"Thank you sweetheart," Skye could hear the smile in her dad's voice and jumped up and down until he lifted her up and held her so that they were face to face. She leaned in to press a sloppy kiss to his cheek and then gave him another big hug.

Her dad hugged her back and she leaned back and played with the buttons on his shirt, "Daddy?"

"Yeah?" Her dad situated her so that he was holding her with one arm so that he could grab her hand and move it away from his shirt. He let her play with his hand instead.

She focused on bending his pinky finger and asked her question, "Did you always wanna be a dad?"

She continued to focus on playing with her dad's hand when her dad answered, "Not always. When I first married your mom, we travelled a lot and we weren't ready to be parents. Once we settled down a little, that's when I wanted to be a dad."

Her dad's answer intrigued her and she stopped messing with his fingers and just held his hand in both of hers as she thought it over. She tried to imagine her dad as anything other than a dad and had kind of a hard time. She wondered if he had had a lot of fun travelling around with her mom and couldn't help but grin a little.

"Were you happy? Traveling around with Mommy?"

Her dad patted her back and gave her a wide, toothy smile and she knew what his answer would be, "I was very happy. We saw amazing things, lived in amazing places, and ate really really amazing food."

Skye perked up and let go of her dad's hand so that she could wrap her arms around his neck, "I like really really amazing food."

"I know you do sweetheart," Her dad chuckled and then got a faraway look in his eyes.

She wondered if her dad missed it. That thought made her smile slowly disappear.

Resting her head on her dad's shoulder, she hesitantly murmured, "But… you're happy now, right?"

Her dad didn't hesitate, "I'm the happiest I've ever been. You, your brothers and sisters, and your mom make me the happiest guy in the world."

Skye chewed on the inside of her cheek, "For real?"

"For real. Being a dad is my favorite thing ever," Her dad squeezed her tight into another hug, "Actually, being _your guys'_ dad is my favorite thing ever."

Smiling into his shoulder, she happily said, "Good," before leaning back and wiggling around so that her dad would set her down, "I have a present for you!"

Her dad set her down and pretended to be surprised, "A present? For me?"

She giggled and ran over to the counter to grab the present before handing it to him, "Here you go!"

Skye tried not the be nervous as she watched her dad open up the sparkly green bag his present was in. She knew her dad would like her gift because he liked all of her gifts, so she shoved her nervousness aside and excitedly hopped up and down on her toes instead.

"Card first," she reminded him and her dad nodded and grabbed her homemade card.

She had worked really hard on that card. It was made of light green construction paper and on the front, it read, "Happy Father's Day!" in bright glitter glue. It had been hard not to smudge the glitter glue as it had dried but she had been super proud of herself when she had managed.

The inside of the card had a drawing that Skye was very proud of. It had taken her a whole afternoon to draw out their favorite ice cream shop. She had drawn her and her dad holding hands in front of the ice cream display case and the guy behind the counter was handing her dad his chocolate milkshake. They both had smiles on their faces and Skye even made sure to draw her dad wearing his favorite Captain America shirt that he only wore on the weekends.

"Aw Skye! I love this! You know where this belongs?" Her dad proudly held her card in front of him and Skye eagerly pointed to the refrigerator and hopefully asked, "On the fridge?"

Her dad nodded and hung the card onto the fridge so that her picture was displayed for everyone to see. Skye always felt ridiculously proud of herself when one of her pictures or assignments ended up on the fridge because it meant that her parents were really proud of her work and wanted everyone to see it.

Her dad admired the card for a little longer and even though the thought that her dad really loved the card that she had made for him made her feel all warm inside, she still wanted her dad to see her present, so she tugged on his shirt and pointed towards the giftbag.

After another long moment, her dad finally stopped admiring the card and reached into the giftbag, pulled out her present, and peeled away the light blue tissue paper. Skye waited anxiously for his reaction.

After school one day while her dad was still at work, Skye had talked to her mom about wanting to give her dad a special gift for Father's Day and they had come up with this. They had gone out and bought a medium-sized picture frame and Skye had painted it dark red and had decorated it by dipping her fingers in bright, colorful paint and pressing her fingerprints onto the frame. Inside the frame was a pretty piece of scrapbook paper that took up the whole frame. Glued onto the top left and bottom right hand corners of the paper where two small pictures that Skye had chosen. One of them was one of Skye's favorites. She had talked her dad into having a teaparty with her and Skye had managed to put a tiara on his head, butterfly clips in his hair, and a fluffy blue scarf around his neck. She was smiling next to him with a teapot in hand, pouring imaginary tea into the tiny cup that her dad was holding. The other picture was a picture that Nattie had taken of the two of them without them knowing. They had been at the farmer's market and Skye was sitting on her dad's shoulders, laughing and pointing at something out of the picture. Her dad was holding onto her legs so that she didn't fall but he was looking up at her and grinning. It was obvious from the picture that both of them had been very happy in that moment and Skye was happy that her sister had captured it for them.

Since the two pictures didn't take up the whole frame, the spare space in the middle was filled with words. Glued onto the scrapbook paper were the typed-out words, "I love you because…" and Skye had written things like, "You make me happy. You watch Disney with me when I'm sick. You have tea parties with me. You push me super high on the swings." She had squished as many reasons for loving her dad onto the piece of paper as she could so it looked a little cramped but she didn't think her dad would mind.

She watched his face as he read everything she wrote and by the time he was done, she was biting her lip and trying not to fidget too much.

It had been a few minutes since her dad had opened her gift and he was still silently taking it in and Skye knew that he either really loved it or really hated it, but since she wasn't completely sure which one it was, she was on the verge of taking it back and saying she'd go and get him a different present, like atie or something, 'cause dad's were supposed to love ties, when her dad finally spoke up.

"Thank you so much Skye. This… this means a lot to me," Her dad's voice was kinda wobbly and Skye stopped fidgeting so that she could focus on his face and make sure that he was alright.

She stepped up to him, wrapped an arm around his leg, and set her chin on his hip so that she could look up at him, "You like it?"

"I love it," Her dad set the picture frame down so that he could reach down and haul her into his arms for a proper hug.

Smiling widely and with all of her nervousness behind her, she hugged her dad back real tight before leaning back and smiling, "Now I'm gonna make you breakfast. No helping!"

Her dad pouted exaggeratedly, "Aw come on! Making breakfast with you is one of the best parts of my day!"

Skye felt warm and happy and like the smile on her face would never go away, so she relented, "Okay you can help, but I'm gonna do all the stuff you usually do and you can do the easy stuff that I usually do."

Her dad set her on the counter so that she could grab the mixing bowl and gave her a silly salute, "You got it boss."

* * *

Let me know what you thought! I've always had an awesome relationship with my dad and I know little Skye and Phil would have one too :) Thank you so much for reading! xx


	68. Skye, Natasha, and Sharon

**Hey guys! Grossly-sweet and arichardfulpotato wanted to see some more Natasha and Sharon and sent in a bunch of prompts so I wrote some of them out in a big chapter! Also, I'm going to be going on vacation for the next 2 weeks and won't be able to bring my laptop so if I'm slow to respond to comments or prompt suggestions, just know that I'm not ignoring you!**

 **Warning : This chapter contains homophobic comments and slurs in the last section. If that's triggering to you, please be careful or just skip this chapter!**

 **# = a time jump within that designated section. Normally I would just section it off but I didn't want all the lines to get confusing.**

* * *

Skye poked her head into her sister's room, "Wanna go play outside with me?"

"Can't. Sharon's gonna be over soon," Natasha set her hairbrush down and turned around to give her the gentle smile that was always reserved for Sharon.

"Yay! She can play with me!" Skye hopped up and down excitedly before running out of her sister's room before Nattie could say anything.

Skye _loved_ Sharon and she loved it when she came over. She always managed to wrangle Sharon into playing with her and Sharon was _fun._ Sharon came up with the best stories, she thought up the best backstories for their games, and was always willing to go along with whatever silly adventure Skye came up with.

By the time the doorbell rang, Skye was wiggling around excitedly and she immediately ran towards the door and wrenched it open before Natasha even made it out of her room, "Hi!

It had taken Sharon a little while to get used to Skye's enthusiastic greetings but by now, she knew the drill. Sharon leaned down and held her arms open so that Skye could give her a big hug. Sharon lifted her up and spun her around a few times before setting her back down and holding her hand out so that they could do their secret handshake, "Hey Skye. How's it going?"

They finished their handshake and Skye kept a hold on Sharon's hand so that she could pull her inside, "Good! C'mon, let's go play with my play-doh! It's on the table!"

Skye tried to tug Sharon towards their dining room but the older girl hung back, "Hang on, where's Tasha?"

They both heard footsteps from upstairs and soon enough Nattie emerged. Skye watched Sharon smile widely and let go of her hand so that she could walk over to Natasha and press a kiss to her cheek, "Hey."

Skye couldn't help but smile at the look of happiness on her sister's face. Nattie reached out and held onto Sharon's hand, "Hi. Did Skye give you the royal treatment?"

"It's always nice to know I'm welcome here," Sharon chuckled.

Now that Nattie and Sharon had said hi, Skye was getting impatient, so she grabbed onto their intertwined hands and tried to pull them towards the dining room, "C'mon!"

To her displeasure, Natasha and Sharon didn't move. She looked up at them questioningly and Natasha gently pulled Skye's hand off of theirs, "Sorry Skye, we can't play right now, we've got some homework to do."

What was the point of Sharon coming over if she couldn't play?

Sticking her bottom lip out a little, she widened her eyes and gave her sister the most pitiful look she could think of.

Sharon made a soft sound but Natasha squeezed her hand, shook her head, and focused back on Skye, "That's not gonna work this time маленькая звезда. Maybe we can play when we're done."

Skye stomped her foot but mumbled, "Alright," and watched as Natasha led Sharon upstairs.

"Come on Skye, I'll play play-doh with you."

Looking towards where her brother's voice had come from, Skye saw him in the kitchen, stuffing a sandwich into his mouth and putting away the bread. Thinking it over for a second, Skye nodded and skipped into the kitchen so that she could pull Trip over to where her play-doh was set up.

She had to admit that Trip was pretty good at play-doh. He made fun stuff without mixing up all the colors and he didn't mind rolling the play-doh into little balls so that Skye could smash them with her fist.

As fun as Trip was, after an hour, she was getting bored, and after putting away all of her stuff and giving Trip a big hug for playing with her, she ran upstairs to see if Sharon and Nattie were done with their homework.

She was delighted to find the girls lying on their backs on the floor with their backpacks lying forgotten on Nattie's bed. Natasha was showing Sharon something on her phone and both girls were laughing.

"You're done with your homework!" Skye happily exclaimed from the doorway.

Sharon jumped and Natasha accidently dropped her phone on her face. They both sat up and Nattie rubbed her nose before admonishing her, "Don't creep up on us like that Skye, it's freaky."

Skye shrugged and quickly made her way into the room so that she could grab Sharon's hand, "Let's go play Sharon! I wanna show you what we did in art class and Bobbi got me a new coloring book!"

While pulling Sharon out of Nattie's room and into her own, Skye heard Nattie sigh but when she glanced back, her sister was following after them.

When they made it into Skye's room, she immediately searched through her backpack to pull out the picture she had painted in art class so that she could proudly show Sharon, and from there, they colored, and then played dolls, all the while Nattie sat back and watched rather than join in.

After the fifth grumble from Natasha, Skye put Alice back into the dollhouse and turned to Sharon, "Nattie has her grumpy face on."

Sharon gave Natasha a sympathetic look before turning back to her, "Maybe I could go hang out with her and her grumpy face will turn into a happy face?"

Skye gave Sharon a bewildered look, "But you're hanging out right now."

Sharon set Mara down, she was the only other person aside from Nattie who the doll liked, and gave Skye her full attention, "I know, and it's fun to play with you, but…"

Sharon trailed off and Nattie spoke up, "But we wanna hang out together. Just the two of us."

Skye's face scrunched up in confusion. She didn't know why they wanted to hang out together when they could hang out with her and play.

Nattie had been sitting in Skye's desk chair but she got up and kneeled in front of her, "маленькая звезда I love you and I love spending time with you, but I want to spend time with Sharon too. Alone." Nattie reached out and intertwined their pinkies, "I don't want this to sound mean but I'd really, really like to hang out with Sharon."

Skye looked over to see if Sharon agreed and saw her nod along with what Nattie was saying.

Leaning away from her sister a little bit, Skye looked up at her and said, "You guys don't wanna play with me anymore?"

Sharon was quick to speak up, "We love playing with you!"

"Yeah, we love Skye-time! But we kind of want to have Natasha and Sharon time too."

Skye slowly nodded. Even though she thought that they would probably have more fun if they stayed and played dolls with her, she understood that her sister wanted to spend time alone with Sharon. She was just worried that they wouldn't want to play with her as much and would forget about her.

"But… you'll still play with me sometimes, right?"

Nattie squeezed her pinky and Sharon reached out to brush Skye's hair out of her face and over her shoulder, "Of course! I don't know what I'd do without my Skye-time."

Even though she was a little sad that her time with Sharon had been cut short, it was really nice to hear that Sharon and Nattie thought that their time with her was important.

Grinning, she nodded again, "Okay."

Sharon and Nattie stood and Nattie pulled Skye up after them and handed her Alice and Sophie and nudged her towards the door, "I bet Trip would love to play with you."

Skye held her dolls close to her chest and gave her sister a quick hug before running out of the room shouting, "Trip!"

* * *

Skye was sitting on her mom's lap at the dining room table, slowly but surely reading through a book, when the doorbell rang.

Her mom stood up, set her back onto the chair, and pointed to the book, "Keep reading baby, you're doing great."

Skye did just that until she heard Sharon's voice at the door. When she heard her, she set her book down and ran excitedly towards the door, "Sharon!"

Sharon gave her a big hug, "Hey Cupcake. How're you doing?"

After wrapping an arm around her mom's leg, she smiled up at Sharon, "I'm doing good! I'm reading a second grade book!"

"A second grade book?" Sharon crouched down so that Skye didn't have to crane her neck to look at her, "Wow! You're so smart!"

Skye giggled and ducked under her mom's arm to hide her face, "Thanks."

Her mom ran a hand over her head and looked to Sharon, "Nat's not here right now but you're welcome to stay here and wait for her to get back if you want."

Sharon shook her head, "Actually, I'm here for you guys. I asked Steve, Bucky, and Clint to distract her today so that I could get her birthday present. The problem is that I'm not exactly sure what to get her. I want it to be perfect," Sharon fidgeted a little, "Would you mind helping me?"

Skye nodded excitedly and glanced up at her mom to see what she thought, "Sure, I don't see why not. Want to go to the mall Skye?"

"Yes!" Skye was already running inside to put on her shoes and she heard Sharon laugh and thank her mom as she disappeared upstairs.

# They had been wandering around the mall for a little while now and Sharon wasn't getting anywhere with Nattie's present.

Skye tugged on Sharon's hand, "I don't see anything Shary."

"Are you sure?" Sharon looked back to the store they had just walked out of, "That was a pretty shirt."

Skye scrunched up her nose and shook her head. She wanted Sharon to get Nattie something special for her birthday. A shirt wouldn't cut it.

They both followed her mom into another department store and her mom motioned that she was going to go to one section of the store and they both nodded at her. Looking around, Skye brightened up when she saw the jewelry counter. She pointed towards it and pulled Sharon over to it.

Pressing her nose into the glass display, Skye critically looked at each piece of jewelry and asked herself if her sister would like it.

She dragged Sharon around the whole display and was about to give up when a pretty necklace caught her eye. There were a couple different heart shaped necklaces with different designs on the front of them. One of them had roses, another had stars, another had an angel with a pretty halo, but the last one was the one that had made Skye pause. Engraved in the middle of the silver heart was a delicate pair of ballet shoes. The ribbon laces were tied together in a neat bow and it was _perfect_.

Skye studied the necklace further and a tiny latch on the side of it made her eyes light up and she was delighted to find out that the necklace was a locket, which made it even more perfect for her sister. Nattie absolutely loved pictures, she said that they captured magical moments that might've otherwise been forgotten, so Skye couldn't believe that this pretty necklace had managed to contain two of Nattie's favorite things.

"Shary! I found it!"

Sharon nearly knocked over a nice earring display in her haste to see where Skye was pointing.

Sharon's eyes were drawn right to the necklace that Skye was talking about and she slowly smiled, "Skye, you're a genius!"

Laughing happily, Skye watched Sharon get the attention of the worker behind the counter and hopped up and down, "Now all you need is two pictures of you guys."

A stressed out looking man in uniform unlocked the case in front of them and gave Sharon the necklace she was pointing to and they both thanked him before he scurried away to help another customer.

Sharon held the velvety box tightly in one hand and pulled her phone out of her back pocket with the other. She tapped her phone a few times before holding it so that Skye could see, "I already know which pictures I'm gonna use."

It was impossible not to smile when Skye saw the picture on Sharon's phone. It had been taken when they had all gone to a street fair. Sharon and Natasha were both wearing flower crowns with ribbons trailing down the backs that one of the vendors had very kindly given to the two of them. Sharon was holding a bright blue snowcone in her hand and was sticking her tongue out so that everyone could see how blue it was. Nattie had a proud smirk on her face and was holding a giant bear that she had won by throwing darts at balloons taped to a wall full of bullseyes. Skye remembered that the guy in line behind them had been making snide comments about Natasha not being able to hit the bullseye since she was "such a tiny little thing." Nattie had aggressively thrown all three of her darts into three different bullseyes before grabbing the giant bear from the shocked vendor, turning around to give the man behind them a dirty look, and asking the man if he could beat that. Skye had laughed at how red the man's face had gotten and Sharon had announced that they needed to take a picture to commemorate the moment.

Skye laughed and nodded, "It's perfect. What's the second picture gonna be?"

Sharon swiped through her phone for a minute before showing Skye the next picture.

While the first picture had been silly, the second one was sweet. Like, super duper, cavity-inducing sweet.

Sharon and Nattie both looked very happy and Skye recognized their outfits and realized that this had been taken on one of their dates. Nattie hadn't stopped talking about how Sharon had surprised her by taking her to the beach for the day and Skye had been very jealous. In the picture, Sharon and Natasha's faces took up most of the screen but you could see the beautiful sunset behind them. Both of their hair was wavy from the salty air and their faces were a little pink but Skye couldn't tell if that was from the sun or from happiness. Sharon was pressing a kiss to Nattie's cheek and Skye could see her smiling into it. Natasha looked surprised, the picture had been taken mid-laugh, and her eyes were bright and sparkling.

Skye _loved_ it. She squealed and looked up at Sharon, "They're perfect!"

Sharon leaned down to give her a hug, "Thank you Skye. I never would've been able to do this without your help."

Skye hugged her back. She loved Sharon and she also loved that Sharon loved her sister as much as she did. She was more than happy to help Sharon find Nattie a gift that she knew she would love.

"You're welcome Shary. Nattie's gonna be so happy when she see's it."

Sharon stood up and ushered her towards the registers, "I hope so."

* * *

Skye was used to her mom picking her up from school, it happened every single day, so when her parents had told her that her siblings were going to be picking her up today because the hospital they worked at was having an important meeting that they couldn't miss, she was surprised and excited.

She was waiting for her siblings, talking to Jemma, Fitz, and Ms. Hill, when she saw their car pull up. She was saying her goodbyes to her friends and teacher when she saw an unexpected figure hop out of the backseat. Squealing in excitement, she grabbed onto Jemma's arm and pointed, "Sharon's here! Look, it's Sharon!"

Jemma and Fitz had both met Sharon before and her friends really liked her so they both happily waved and called towards her, "Hi Sharon!"

Sharon shut the back door and smiled and waved towards them before reaching out and holding Nattie's hand.

"Bye guys, I'll see you later!" She waved to her friends and started to make her way towards the car.

Nattie gave Sharon a quick kiss but pulled away fast enough to catch Skye when she threw herself at her sister. She hugged Natasha tightly, reached out to give Trip a one-armed hug, and then wiggled around and reached for Sharon until her sister deposited her into Sharon's arms with an amused chuckle.

Natasha ushered them back towards the car, "How was school?"

Sharon hugged her tight and grinned, "Did you learn anything new today, Cupcake?"

Sharon gently set her into her booster seat and Nattie helped her get buckled in safely while Skye launched into an animated story about what she had learned about the water cycle.

# The next day, Skye was enjoying her lunch when she looked up and realized that three older kids were glancing over to her and snickering. She turned around to make sure that the group weren't looking at someone behind her but there were only a bunch of little kindergarteners. When one of the older kids pointed and laughed at her, all of her doubts disappeared and she knew for sure that they were laughing at her.

Skye had no idea what they were laughing about. She ran a hand over her face to make sure that there was no food on it and smoothed a hand over her ponytail to make sure it didn't look crazy. After glancing at her shirt to make sure there was no stains on it and finding that there were none, she tugged on Jemma's sleeve and leaned in to whisper, "See those kids over there?"

Jemma set down her apple and looked towards where Skye had motioned, "Yeah, what about them?"

"They're laughing at me."

Fitz and Lincoln leaned towards them and forced their way into the conversation, "Who's laughing at you?"

Skye pointed to the group of fourth or fifth graders that were sitting two tables away from them.

The boys took a look and turned back to her. Fitz gave her a bewildered look, "Did you do something to them?"

Studying the group of older kids seriously, she thought back to if she had ever done anything to them but Skye had never even _seen_ them before. She shook her head and looked back to her friends, hoping that they would be able to help her figure out what was going on.

Suddenly, Jemma straightened up and squeezed Skye's arm tightly, "They're coming over here!"

Sure enough, when Skye looked back to the older kids, she saw that they were walking towards them.

"Who were the two lesbos with you yesterday after school?" One of the older girls asked and her two friends stepped up next to her. The girl had blonde hair, blue eyes, and was wearing a pretty pink dress. Skye might have complimented her on it if the girl's tone hadn't been so aggressive.

Skye's eyebrows drew in in confusion and she turned to Jemma to see if her friend knew what the older kids were talking about. Judging from the look on her friend's face, Jemma was as clueless and she was.

After clearing her throat, she straightened up and told herself not to be afraid of these bigger kids, "What?"

The girl who had spoken nudged her friend and stage whispered, "We have to speak slower 'cause she obviously doesn't understand."

The older girl's friend nodded seriously and leaned forward before he overdramatically enunciated, "Who were the dykes with you yesterday?"

Skye was so confused and lost. She had no idea what these older kids were talking about or who they were referring too because she didn't know what the words they were saying meant but from their tones, it wasn't anything good.

"Um, my brother and sister picked me up yesterday," she uncertainly said.

The three older kids laughed and Skye felt herself start to grow angry. She didn't like being laughed at and, even though she wasn't sure what they were talking about, it sounded like the older kids were making fun of her siblings and she _really_ didn't like that.

Pushing her half-eaten lunch aside, she stood up and put her hands on her hips, "What're you laughing at?"

The older kids laughed even harder and Skye grew angrier and angrier. She took a step towards them and felt Jemma grab onto her shirt to stop her from moving further.

Once they stopped laughing, the boy clutched his side and said, "We're laughing because you're _sister_ is one of _them_."

Skye balled her hands into fists and took another step towards the older kids, ignoring her friend's warnings and brushing Jemma aside, "One of what?"

The blonde sneered at her, "A dirty lesbian."

The girl's other friend who had been silent up until now spoke up, "I wouldn't want one of _those_ in _my_ family."

One day, her family had sat her down and had had a talk about how some girls liked girls, how some boys liked boys, and how some boys and girls liked both genders. Nattie had told her that she liked boys and girls and her parents and sister had helpfully answered all of her questions and they had gone about their day. Nowhere in their conversation had they said anything about any sexuality being 'dirty' or wrong, like how these dumb kids were making it out to be.

Skye stepped in front of the group of bullies and angrily yelled, "Don't talk about my sister like that!"

"We'll talk about her however we want," the blonde took a step forward so that she was invading Skye's space and stomped on her foot. Skye winced but before she could react, the blond reached out and pushed Skye hard so that she stumbled a couple steps back. She would've fallen if it hadn't been for Jemma catching her. The blonde strode towards her and looked like she was going to push her again and that's when Skye decided that it was okay to do something about it.

As least Skye could honestly say that she wasn't the one who started the fight. And when she aimed a punch to the blonde's cheek but missed and clipped her chin instead, Skye adamantly ignored the flare of pain that radiated up her arm and instead focused on how easily the blonde went down and started crying. The blonde's friends reached down to help her back up and by that time, the teachers were rushing over.

"Don't say mean things about my sister!" She lunged forward, she wasn't sure what she was going to do because the blonde clearly wasn't interested in hitting her back, and was pleasantly surprised to see the blonde flinch back. She hoped that the blonde would think twice before insulting people, _especially_ about insulting her family.

Before she knew it, she was being ushered out of the cafeteria and into the principal's office.

# Skye was sitting on her bed with her arms crossed, determinedly staring at the ceiling.

Skye had had to leave school early and was suspended for a day. When she had told her parents that the girl had been making fun of Natasha and that she had just been defending herself, their initial anger had disappeared. They had made sure she was okay before taking her home.

She had only told her mom and dad that the blonde girl and her friend had been making fun of Natasha and not what they had said and she had been pretty quiet since her parents had burst into the principal's office. Her dad had tried to talk to her once they had gotten home but her mom had put a hand on his arm and let her run upstairs to her room.

Now, she was staring up at the stars on her ceiling and was trying to make sense of everything that had happened.

There was a knock at her door and before she could even sit up to see who it was, someone collapsed next to her on her bed. Skye glanced over to see Nattie lying down next to her. She scooted up a little so that Nattie could wrap an arm around her shoulders and she could rest her head on her sister's shoulder.

They were quiet for a little while before Nattie quietly said, "Mom said you got in a fight at school today."

She shrugged and burrowed further into her sister's side.

"She also said," Nattie moved down so that they were face to face, "that it was about me."

Skye shrugged again and reached out to play with Natasha's hair.

"C'mon маленькая звезда, you can talk to me."

Taking a deep breath, she avoided eye contact with her sister and mumbled, "They were making fun of you and saying mean things because you and Shary are girlfriends."

Her sister studied her for a moment before pulling her in for a cuddle. Nattie sighed heavily and said, "I'm sorry маленькая звезда. I can't believe kids that young were acting like that."

Skye settled against her sister and looked up at her, "Why're you sorry? _They_ should be sorry for being so dumb."

Natasha chuckled and Skye leaned up on her elbow so that they were eye to eye, "They _are_ dumb."

Her sister leaned in to press a kiss to her forehead and mumbled, "I'm not saying they aren't. I just don't want you to get in fights over me."

Skye shrugged again and said matter-of-factly, "I don't mind getting in a fight if it's to defend you."

"That's sweet but let's minimize the fighting, I don't think dad can handle it." Natasha ran her hands through her hair and Skye leaned into it.

She thought about it and realized that her sister was probably right. Her dad had been pretty freaked out when he had found out what happened.

"Okay."

Her sister nodded, "Good. Now, lemme see your hand. Punching someone always hurts way more than you think it will."

Grimacing, Skye held her hand out so her sister could carefully hold it in her own. The knuckles were a little scraped and were turning a light shade of purple.

Natasha made a sympathetic sound and brushed a gentle kiss over her knuckles before catching her eye and earnestly saying, "Thanks for sticking up for me."

Skye grinned, "That's what sisters do."

* * *

Please let me know what you thought! This chapter took _forever_ to write!

If you have a prompt for me, you can either write it in a comment here, send it in a Private Message on here, or submit it to my tumblr (URL: dorkyassassins). Thank you so much for reading! xx


	69. Jemma & Fitz Sleep Over

**Hey guys! I kinda missed writing Jemma and Fitz so this chapter is a slumber party with them and Skye. I hope you like it!**

* * *

"Excited?"

Skye glanced over to where Nattie was lounging on the other side of the couch. She had been wiggling around with excitement, unable to sit still and shooting looks at her sister for the last ten minutes, waiting for her to say something, and she had _finally_ taken the bait.

Hopping up onto her knees, she started jumping up and down and smiled widely, " _So excited_."

Her sister put a hand on her shoulder to get her to stop jumping around and Skye stopped long enough to drape herself over Nattie's legs instead, "This is the first time I've ever had my _own_ sleepover in my _own_ house."

Natasha gave up trying to focus on her show and focused her attention onto her, which was what Skye had been waiting for since she had jumped onto the couch fifteen minutes ago.

"Well, you guys are gonna have a bunch of fun."

Reaching up to twirl a bright red strand of Nattie's hair around her finger, Skye smiled widely and said, "I wish they'd get here already!"

Her big sister gently patted her thigh, "Patience is a virtue, маленькая звезда."

She scrunched up her nose, "What's a 'virtue'?"

"Patience."

"What?"

"What?"

They were giving each other confused looks when the doorbell rang and offered them a distraction. She wiggled around until she slid off of her sister's lap and ran to the door. She grabbed onto the handle a second before her mom could and yelled, "I got it mommy!"

"Inside voice please Skye."

"Sorry." Giving her mom an apologetic look, she wrenched the door open and immediately ran out to where Jemma and Fitz were waiting, "Hi!"

Her friends crowded around her and started talking over one another. It happened so frequently that their loud chatter made her smile rather than flinch back like it used to. She let Jemma and Fitz talk excitedly about something or other until they finally calmed down a little and she heard Jemma's mom and her mom laugh.

Skye and her friends looked up to see their parents watching them fondly.

"Do you two have all your stuff?"

Jemma nodded confidently," Yep! I made a checklist!"

Jemma's mom nodded and handed two bags over to Skye's mom, "It was a very long checklist."

Fitz nodded and Jemma put her hands on her hips, "You can never be too prepared mom, you told me that, remember?"

"I remember darling," Jemma's mom reached down to pull Jemma into a tight hug and pressed a kiss to her cheek, "Now, you two be good for Melinda. Call me if you need me, alright?"

Fitz nodded dutifully and Jemma pressed a quick kiss to her mom's cheek before stepping back, "We will. Love you!"

"I love you too," Jemma's mom stepped off of the porch and waved and Skye ushered her friends inside. She pushed them into her house, grabbed onto their hands, and tugged them towards the back door, "Let's go play!"

* * *

Skye was in the middle of trying to infiltrate an enemy's base camp behind the slide when her mom called to them from the back door, "Time to come in you three, it's going to get dark soon."

Fitz popped up from behind one of their lawn chairs and Jemma peered around a tree. Skye grumpily sighed and abandoned their mission, "But we're playing Super Secret Spies mommy!"

Her mom waved them inside and the three of them reluctantly made their way towards her, "You can finish your game tomorrow. Come on, Nat'll teach you how to tie-dye."

"Tie-dye? I love tie-dye!" Jemma's slow walk turned into a run and Skye hurried after her friend. Her mom had had to explain to her what tie-dye was after she had suggested doing it at her sleepover.

The dining room table had been covered by layers of newspaper and sitting on it were seven aluminum trays filled with dye, a couple of shirts, and a bunch of rubber bands.

"I've never tie-dyed anything before," Fitz said as he climbed onto a chair.

"Me neither," Skye sat down next to him and Jemma smiled at them from across the table, "I have! I can teach you!"

Natasha appeared with a bunch of large ziploc bags in hand, "Let's do this."

Skye could clearly see that Jemma was in her element as she showed them how to tie off the shirts and carefully dunk them into the colored dye that they wanted, and with Nattie's careful supervision, they barely made a mess.

They made two shirts each and carefully set them into individual bags so that the dye could sink in.

By the time they finished trying to scrub the colorful dye off of their hands, everything had been cleared away from the table and her mom was sitting at it, looking over a bunch of papers.

"Mommy, what's for dinner?" Skye pushed the papers out of her mom's hands and leaned on her legs to get her attention.

"Are you guys hungry?"

Fitz and Jemma both nodded enthusiastically. Skye answered for all of them, "Yes."

"How about we all make our own mini-pizzas?"

Jemma and Fitz looked at each other before jumping up and down and talking over one another.

"Our _own_ pizza?"

"You mean _we_ get to make it?"

Her mom chuckled and nodded and Skye grabbed her hand to try and pull her out of her chair and into the kitchen, "Can we make them now?"

"Yeah, go call everyone else down so they can make some too." Her mom let them push her into the kitchen and Skye shouted over her shoulder, "Trip! Nattie! Daddy! Come make dinner!"

"Inside voice Skye," Her mom chided her.

"Sorry," Skye hoped she sounded apologetic because she was a little too excited by the thought of being able to make her own pizza to actually feel too sorry.

She, Jemma, and Fitz dragged chairs to stand on over to the counter while her mom pulled out everything they'd need.

Her mom placed a chunk of pizza dough in front of each of them and said, "First, we have to roll the dough out into a thin circle."

Skye put all her weight behind pressing the dough down and her friends followed her lead. Once their dough was spread out and vaguely resembled circles, her mom handed each of them a spoon and said, "Now put on as much sauce as you like."

Skye dipped her spoon into the jar her mom was holding out for her and spread it all over her dough.

"I like a lot of sauce, is that okay?" Fitz questioned

Her mom nodded and motioned for him to dunk his spoon into the jar. Jemma giggled when Fitz added three spoonfuls of sauce onto his dough.

Once everyone had sauce on their dough, her mom pushed a bunch of toppings their way, "Now, put whatever you want on it."

Skye immediately reached for the cheese and sprinkled a handful of it over her pizza. Once she was done, she tilted her head to study her pizza before shoving both of her hands into the bag of cheese and pulling out two handfuls. Her friends giggled and her mom sighed as she sprinkled the huge amount of cheese onto her dough.

Once she was satisfied, she smiled and gave the bag of cheese to Jemma. Her friend used considerably less cheese than she had and Fitz used even less than that.

Skye liked pepperoni on her pizza so she arranged the thin slices in a smiley face and sat back when she was done.

Her friends liked a lot more toppings on their pizza than she did and Skye watched with varying levels of disgust.

Jemma skipped over the pepperoni and reached for the ham instead. Her friend tore the ham into tiny pieces and carefully placed it all over her pizza before adding green peppers and onions.

Skye thought that Jemma's pizza was kinda weird but it was nothing compared to Fitz's. He put _everything_ on his pizza, pepperoni, ham, onions, green peppers, mushrooms, olives, and even barbeque chips (for scientific research, he said). She and Jemma wrinkled their noses up in disgust but didn't say anything.

Once their pizza's were in the oven, all three of them looked up expectantly at her mom, "Now what?"

"Now we wait."

They all groaned and her mom chuckled, "Go play. I'll tell you when they're done."

They all made their way into the living room, where Nattie and Trip were already fighting over the television remote. They stood out of the way and watched the argument unfold before them.

"You got to watch your shows last night Trip!" Nattie tried to pull the remote out of Trip's hands but her brother wasn't having it.

"Yeah, but you made me watch Top Gun earlier!" Trip tried to get Natasha to let go of the remote by tickling her sides but in order to do that, he had to take one hand off of the remote. Nattie almost managed to wriggle it out of his hands before he realized his mistake and grabbed it again.

Jemma leaned over and whispered, "My mom says that sharing is caring and that big kids share their toys."

Fitz nodded in solidarity and Skye spoke up loud enough so that her siblings could hear, "Nattie! Trip! Jemma's mom says that big kids share their toys."

Fitz pointed to them, "You're definitely big kids."

Trip muttered something and Natasha sighed before they both started to try to find a show they both wanted to watch.

Once that was settled, Fitz led them towards his overnight bag, "I packed one of my new books! It's about engineering! We can color in all the parts to different things."

He proudly pulled out his book and showed it to them. Even though it didn't have any superheroes on it, it still looked like it'd be fun to color so Skye ran upstairs to get her crayons before settling in on the living room floor with her friends.

They only stopped when her mom told them that their pizzas were done and even then, they only paused so that they could go grab their food and so Jemma and Skye could poke fun at Fitz's pizza and then they were back to coloring, only now they were smudging sauce on the pages as well.

Once they were done eating and Fitz had put his coloring book away because he was starting to get irritated that they couldn't stop getting pizza sauce all over the pages, they were at a loss for what to do.

Skye looked to her mom and luckily, her mom was ready to suggest, "Why don't you get your pajamas on and then we can get you all set up in the playroom for bed."

Once they all had their pajamas on, they ran up to the playroom and helped her mom grab all the blankets and pillows they could find and spread them along the floor. Fitz set up a "structurally sound" fort out of blankets and they all crawled into it while her mom set up Finding Nemo for them to watch.

They heard the opening credits to the movie start and Skye's mom poked her head into the fort, "Goodnight you guys. Let me know if you need anything."

They all nodded and Skye gave her mom a quick hug and then pushed her out of the fort.

"This is so cool," Jemma said.

Fitz pulled a blanket over his legs, "Yeah, I've never slept in a fort before."

"Me neither. I'm happy you guys are here," Skye said earnestly.

Jemma laid down on her stomach and got comfy, "Me too. Maybe next time we can sleep at my house."

Skye laid down in between her friends and grinned, "Yeah! I wanna try to dress your cat up in my dolls clothes."

Jemma made a face and Skye laughed. She was promptly hit in the face with a pillow. She made an indignant sound and Fitz shushed her and hit her with the pillow again, "Shh, the movie's starting."

She grumbled and Jemma giggled but they all settled down to watch the movie.

* * *

Skye woke up to someone poking her in the face.

She tried to roll over but she ended up crashing into a sleeping body. She opened her eyes and heard Fitz make an irritated sound in his sleep before turning to Jemma and sleepily mumbling, "Were you poking me?"

Jemma nodded and Skye groaned, "Why?"

Skye just wanted to go back to sleep but when her friend hesitated and didn't say anything, she forced herself to keep her eyes open and focused on her friend, "What's wrong?"

Jemma was looking around nervously and when her eyes started to fill with tears, Skye reached out to comfortingly hold her hand, "It's dark in here."

Her friend was right. Their fort was really dark and there was no light coming from the television. Her mom must have shut it off and forgotten to plug in a night light.

Jemma sniffled and Skye pulled her in for a hug.

Once Jemma had calmed down a little, Skye slowly peeled her blankets away and quietly crawled out of the fort, "C'mon."

Her friend looked confused but followed her out of the fort, leaving a snoring Fitz, and down the hallway. It was dark and Jemma clung to her arm as Skye tugged her into her room. She pulled Jemma to her bed, made her lay down, lied down next to her, and pointed towards the ceiling, "Look."

Jemma rubbed her eyes, looked up, and softly gasped, "Pretty."

Skye still had the glow in the dark stars on her ceiling from when they had been put up there her first night living with her family. They gave off enough light to scare away the monsters, at least that's what Skye told herself, and were very, very pretty.

Pulling her blankets up over the two of them, Skye snuggled into her pillow and reached out to hold Jemma's hand, "Better?"

"Better," Jemma rolled over so that their faces were close and Skye gave her a sleepy smile before closing her eyes and falling back asleep.

* * *

Let me know what you thought! I just threw in stuff that I do with the kids I nanny cause I couldn't remember what happened at slumber parties I went to when I was that young. Thanks for reading! xx


	70. Natasha is Very Stressed Out

**Hey guys! This is based off of AtomicPlaty's prompt: "Could you do one where Natasha snaps at Skye because she is stressed because of an exam/finals. She tells Skye why and and Skye trys to help her with the stress?"**

 **I hope you like it! x**

* * *

"Skye?"

"Mhm?"

"Please stop that."

"Stop what?"

"That humming. It's driving me nuts."

"I'm humming?"

"Yes and it's driving me crazy."

Skye turned back to her homework and made a conscious effort to stop humming. She hadn't realized she was doing it but she sometimes did that when she was trying to focus on her homework, other times she ended up sticking her tongue out without knowing and her friends liked to make fun of her for it. She didn't know why she did these things when she was doing school work or trying to focus but she guessed that they helped her because she had been steadily working through her math homework with minimal problems. Nattie, on the other hand, seemed like she was having a pretty hard time.

They were both sitting quietly at the table with papers and books spread out all around them, but Nattie's books were way bigger and scarier looking than Skye's were. Her sister was highlighting a lot of stuff, angrily writing down things in multiple notebooks, and looking from one book to another. Skye thought she already looked a little crazy and felt bad for making her sister even more on edge with her humming.

Going back to her math worksheet, she told herself to focus but actively tried not to hum.

Ten minutes later, her sister heaved a big sigh and set her highlighter down. "Skye," Nattie sounded on edge and tired and Skye immediately gave her her attention, "Yeah?"

"Please, I'm begging you, stop that."

Skye was a little surprised with how desperate her sister sounded but she confidently said, "I wasn't humming!"

Natasha pinched the bridge of her nose, "No, but you've been tapping your pencil on the table for the last five minutes."

Sure enough, when Skye glanced down at her hand, she was bobbing the pencil up and down in her fingers and the eraser kept hitting the table, making a light tapping sound. Skye hadn't even noticed she was doing it, and she was kind of surprised to find out all the little things she didn't without noticing, but immediately stopped.

Her sister let out a sigh of relief and went back to studying while Skye went back to her worksheet. This time though, she made sure that she wasn't making any noises whatsoever.

Fifteen minutes later, Skye had finished her worksheet. She set her pencil down, bit her lip, and looked up at her sister. Natasha was staring angrily at one of her textbooks and Skye was worried that she was going to snap the highlighter in her hand.

Her mom had gone to the grocery store real quick and she _always_ checked over Skye's homework with her. She knew her sister was in kind of a bad mood but she wanted her homework to be finished so that she could go play, so she kneeled on her chair and cautiously spoke, "Nattie?"

Her sister didn't look up from her work but distractedly said, "Yeah?"

"Could you maybe check my homework for me?"

Natasha sighed again and Skye thought that she was doing that a lot, "In a minute, okay?"

Skye nodded and sat back in her chair, determined to be patient.

After absentmindedly doodling on the back of her math worksheet for what felt like forever, Skye looked up at her sister. Natasha was still working diligently, hunched over her textbooks and scribbling notes down into her notebooks. She glanced longingly towards her playground outside before turning back to her sister. She wasn't allowed to leave the table until her homework was done and all she needed to do was get her sister to check it over for her and that was it. She didn't think that that was too much to ask for so she took a deep breath and gently said, "Nattie?"

It took Skye completely by surprise when her sister growled in frustration, slammed her highlighter onto the table, and looked up at her, "What?"

Skye recoiled.

Her sister sounded upset and frustrated and angry all at once and Natasha _never_ spoke to her like that. Her eyes immediately filled with tears and her breath hitched and she bit her bottom lip to keep it from trembling.

She didn't say anything and looked down at her lap to avoid making eye contact with her sister.

"What Skye?" She heard her sister say, but her voice was still sharp so Skye just shook her head and kept her eyes down.

The silence was thick and Skye was barely managing to keep her tears from falling when her mom walked through the door, oblivious to the tension in the room, "Hey guys, could you help me grab the rest of the groceries?"

Skye instantly shot up and ran a mad dash towards her mom, who stumbled a little and dropped the grocery bags in her hands so that she could pick up Skye, who was trying to climb her way up her mom's leg. Skye wrapped her arms around her mom's neck and set her chin on her shoulder. She saw Natasha walk past them and out the front door.

Her mom ran a hand through her hair, "What's wrong baby?"

She considered telling her mom about what had happened but she didn't, "Nothing, I just missed you."

When Skye leaned back to look at her mom, it didn't seem like she believed her. Her mom pressed a kiss to her forehead, set her down, and gently said, "Are you sure?"

Grabbing onto her mom's hand, she nodded, "Yeah."

Her mom scrutinized her before slowly nodding, "Alright. I'm right here if you change your mind, okay?"

"Okay mommy," She followed her mom into the kitchen and helped her put away the groceries.

* * *

For the last couple of hours, her sister had stayed at the table, studying and reading and writing in her notebooks, while Skye had kept her distance. She wasn't even sure if her sister had noticed that she hadn't been very nice earlier, she was so focused on her school stuff, but Skye definitely remembered.

She was sitting on the living room floor, coloring with her dad, when he looked over to where Nattie was still sitting, studying diligently, and said, "Hey Nat, come take a break. You've still got a few days until your exams."

Natasha didn't even look up, "I can't dad."

"You're going to wear yourself down sweetheart."

Nattie sighed, rubbed her eyes, and relented. She kept her books open on the table but pushed herself out of her chair, stretched out, and made her way towards them.

Skye watched her sister sit down on the floor by them and she could literally see her relax for the first time that day.

"Can I color with you?" Natasha was directing the question to her and Skye thought about it.

She felt angry, which was new because before, she had felt shocked and hurt. But now she was just mad. Her sister had been mean to her and had hurt her feelings for no reason and she wasn't happy about it.

She crossed her arms and mumbled, "I don't care."

Her dad gave her a puzzled look and Natasha raised a questioning eyebrow and Skye got even angrier because her sister didn't even know why she was upset.

"I'm gonna go play in my room," She stormed away and could feel her dad and sister's stares on her back but she didn't let it stop her.

She wasn't surprised when a few minutes later, there was a knock on her door. Thinking that it was her dad coming to check up on her, she called out for him to come in, but was surprised to see that it was her sister. She abandoned her dolls to their dollhouse and sat on her bed, keeping her eyes on her hands and away from her sister the whole time.

"What's wrong маленькая звезда?"

Skye felt the bed dip down but didn't look up, instead, she bit the inside of her cheek and shrugged. The fact that her sister really was so clueless about how she was feeling made her even more upset.

It was silent for a few long moments before Natasha asked, "Are you mad at me?"

At first, Skye was determined to stay silent and stubbornly make her sister figure out why she was upset, but then she heard Jiaying's voice in her head telling her that people aren't able to read her mind and she has to use her words. Even though she knew Jiaying was right, she still stayed silent for a few more minutes just 'cause she wanted to.

Finally, she reluctantly nodded.

The bed shifted and Skye could feel Natasha scooting closer to her but she still refused to look up at her.

"Why're you mad?" Nattie didn't sound upset that she was mad at her, just curious, so Skye finally looked up at her and angrily said, "You were mean to me earlier."

She could tell that Nattie had her thinking face on and knew the exact moment that her sister figured it out because her eyebrows raised and she immediately looked sorry, "Oh маленькая звезда, I'm so sorry, I didn't even realize…"

Skye could tell that her sister really was sorry, she sounded sincere and a little distraught, and she felt some of her anger melt away.

"I really am sorry Skye, I've been so stressed about exams and have been on edge but that's no excuse to snap at you."

After studying her sister to make sure that she really was sorry, the rest of her anger disappeared and she decided to move on. Her sister really hadn't said anything too mean and Skye kind of understood how Natasha was overwhelmed and as long as she was sorry, Skye decided that there was no reason not to move on.

She took in a deep breath and nodded, "I forgive you."

Nattie let out a sigh of relief and gave her a small smile, "Thank you. You're the best baby sister ever," Natasha reached out and lightly tapped the tip of Skye's nose and she scrunched it up and made an indignant sound, "I'm not a baby!"

Her sister laughed, wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and tugged her down so that they were both lying down, "Well, you'll always be my baby sister, no matter how big you get."

Skye pretended to be upset but she actually felt warm and happy again.

They enjoyed the silence for a little while before Nattie sighed and started to get up, "I better get back to studying."

Skye grabbed onto her sister's hand and held her back, "No! Can you stay with me a little longer?"

She gave her sister the most pitiful face she could manage and wasn't too surprised when her sister sighed dramatically and flopped back down onto the bed. Skye snaked her hand into her sister's pocket, grabbed her phone, unlocked it, pulled up her music, and played a song. She got up and started jumping up and down on her bed even though she wasn't supposed to, "How come you have Hannah Montana on your phone Nattie?"

Natasha looked a little sheepish but got up and joined her in jumping up and down, "They're good songs."

Skye giggled and started yelling out the lyrics, "Let's get crazy! Get up and dance! Take a swing, do your thing, It's worth taking a chance!"

Her sister joined in and they both started singing along together. Natasha grabbed her hand and they both jumped off the bed and Skye let her sister twirl her around her room. They both wiggled around and danced until the song was over and then they danced to the next song and then the next one, until they were both out of breath and they collapsed onto the ground, giggling.

Skye spread her arms out to try and cool off and giggled some more when she accidently nudged Nattie in the face.

They started to settle down and Natasha turned to her, "Thanks Skye, I think I really needed that."

Skye rolled onto her stomach and faced her sister, "Do you have to go back to studying now?"

Her sister dramatically sighed and slowly got up, "Yeah."

Skye made a sour face and her sister laughed, "That's how I feel," Her sister leaned down and turned serious, "I know I go into this weird study mode around exam time but if I'm acting mean or snappy, don't be afraid to give me a reality check, alright? I need them sometimes and I don't want to hurt your feelings again."

"Okay." Skye sat up and smiled when Nattie leaned down to press a quick kiss to the top of her head before squaring her shoulders and walking out of her room.

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Please let me know what you think! Thank you so much for reading! :)


	71. Skye's First Time-Out

**Hey guys! I'm finally back from vacation so thanks for being patient with me! I've really appreciated all the comments and I can finally go back and respond to everything so I'm pretty happy about that! :) This one-shot is sort of based off of my own troubles trying to wrangle in the kids I nanny for. Disciplining kids is hard, even though you know it's for their own good. Poor Phil lol.**

 **If you've got a one-shot prompt, please don't be shy and send it in to me! You can do that either in a comment on the story, as a PM on here, or on my tumblr. Either way, I'll put your prompt on my To Be Written list! :) Thanks for reading babes! xx**

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Phil was at a loss.

His normally well-behaved little girl was out of control.

It probably hadn't helped that Melinda had been away for the weekend and Phil hadn't exactly been enforcing all of the rules. But now that he needed Skye to settle down and stop bouncing off the walls so that they could clean up and get her ready for bed, the little girl wasn't having it.

"No!" Skye stomped her foot and put her hands on her hips, an action that mirrored Natasha when she was younger so exactly that Phil had a hard time keeping a straight face for a second.

Phil tried to reach out to get a hold on Skye to get her to stop wiggling around but she just squealed and ran away. He sighed, "Come on Skye, it's bedtime. We need to pick up all these toys and you need to go brush your teeth and put on your pajamas."

It didn't seem like Skye was taking him seriously. She grinned and started spinning around in circles, "But you let me stay up late last night!"

He winced. Skye was right, he had let her stay up a little later than usual last night, but in his defense, he had just gotten a telescope and wanted to show Skye the stars.

"I know but that was last night. Tonight we're going to bed on time." He made sure to use his authoritative, parenting voice but it didn't seem to have any effect on Skye. He kind of wished Melinda was here right now. All she had to do was raise an eyebrow and the kids would do anything she said.

Skye stopped spinning and Phil watched as she teetered for a second before finding her footing. She pouted at him and shook her head, "No daddy, I wanna look at the stars again."

"I'm not debating with you sweetheart, it's bedtime. Now, pick up your toys. The more time you waste here, the less time I'll be able to read to you."

This didn't make the little girl very happy.

Skye made a frustrated sound and, to his surprise, kicked one of her stuffed animals a couple feet away from her, "You're not being very fun!"

"Skye! We don't kick things! You pick up your toys right now or…" He faltered for a second. Skye was usually so well behaved that the only form of discipline that was ever really necessary was a stern talking to. Making up his mind, he continued on, "Or you're going to go to time-out."

The way that Skye's nose crinkled up in confusion was a little adorable but he made sure not to let his thoughts show in his face. He needed his daughter to know that he wasn't messing around.

He watched Skye think over what he had said. It only took a minute or two before Skye seemingly shook off his threat. Either she didn't think it held any weight or she wasn't overly concerned with a time-out.

His little girl reached out for him and grabbed his hand, "C'mon daddy! Can we go look at the stars again?"

She was looking up at him with big, hopeful eyes and he had to actively work not to give in. It was much easier being the fun parent rather than the law enforcer.

"Skye, this is your warning. If you don't pick up your toys and go get ready for bed, I'm going to put you in a time-out."

He made sure to keep his face stern and watched as Skye studied him. For a moment, he thought that she was going to listen to him and he was going to be able to take his daughter upstairs, read her the allotted two stories, and tuck her in without a fight. But then he saw her little face scrunch up defiantly and he internally sighed.

Skye let go of his hand, took a few big steps away from him, and crossed her arms, "No sleep! No!"

This time he really did sigh. Before Skye could react, he quickly stepped towards her, grabbed her under her arms, and lifted her up. She seemed stunned for a moment, like she hadn't actually thought that he was going to put her into a time-out, before she started wiggling around in an attempt to get out of his hold. She whined and squirmed, "No!"

He made his way into the dining room, hooked his foot around one of the chairs at the table, and scooted it away from the table and against the wall. He sat Skye down on the chair and kneeled in front of her. Now that he got her here, he wasn't one hundred percent sure how to proceed. Natasha, Trip, and the twins had all been too old for time-outs when they had first fostered them so this was his first one and he had no idea if he was doing it correctly. He thought that Skye should at least know why she was here, so he put his hands on Skye's shoulders to get her to stop squirming and firmly said, "Skye, you're in time-out because you aren't listening to me. You aren't allowed to get up from this chair until I tell you that you can."

Skye looked bewildered. Her eyebrows were drawn in in confusion and she indignantly slapped her hand down on the side of the chair.

He gave her a stern look before standing up and walking out of the room.

He honestly wasn't surprised when he heard the sound of little feet following after him.

"Daddy?"

Skye sounded so lost and confused that it was instinctual for him to turn around to look at her. She was standing a few feet away from the chair that he had set her on with an unsure look on her face.

If he knew anything, he knew that perseverance was key in discipline, so he walked back to his daughter, gently grabbed her hand, and led her back to the chair. He set her on the chair, stood up, and backed away, even though all he really wanted to do was give her a hug. Straightening his back and channeling his inner Melinda May, he kept his voice strong when he said, "You're time-out's for five minutes Skye. Sit here until I say that you can get up."

Skye's eyes welled up with tears and the sight of that made his chest ache. He told himself to stay strong, Skye wasn't going to learn anything if he caved in and didn't follow through with his discipline, and walked away from his daughter.

He heard the sound of Skye crying and ignored every instinct that told him that he should go and comfort her. He checked his watch and started timing Skye's time-out. It only took forty-two seconds for Skye to jump out of her seat and a couple seconds after that for him to feel her little fingers digging into his side, "I'll be good! I'll be good! Don't leave me, please!"

He carefully peeled Skye's fingers away from his shirt and led her back to the chair, even though it killed him to do so, "You need to sit here for five minutes Skye."

He set her back on the chair and moved away, hoping that Skye would just sit there so that this whole ordeal would be over.

Unfortunately, that wasn't in Skye's plans. She started crying harder and lunged for him.

He could feel his frustration rising and tried not to let it show. "Skye," he said warningly.

He placed her back onto the chair and she grabbed onto his shirt, gripping it so tightly that he couldn't move away. She was crying hysterically now, tears running down her red cheeks, and sniffling, "Don't leave! Don't leave me, I'll be good!"

At first Phil thought that Skye's pleading was just a way for her to try to get out of her time-out, but now he wasn't so sure. Skye sounded very upset, more so than what was warranted for the situation, and he took a good look at her.

Her dark brown eyes looked a little wild and she was crying so hard that Phil was afraid she was going to make herself sick.

He put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Skye, lets do the breathing exercise that Jay taught us."

She sniffled and continued to cry but looked up and focused on him. He gave her an encouraging look and took an exaggerated breath so that shee could follow his lead. After a moment, Skye took a deep stuttering breath in and held it for a few seconds before letting it out.

It took a little while, but Skye finally started to calm down. Her tears slowed down until they finally stopped and she wiped her nose on her shirt sleeve.

Leaning back on his heels, he made sure Skye was giving him her full attention before saying, "Skye, I know you don't want to have a time-out but you made your choice and now you have to see it through. It's only five minutes sweetheart."

"P-please don't l-leave me alone, don't g-go away. I know I was bad but I'll be good, I-I swear! Y-you don't have to go," Skye hiccuped and whimpered.

Her words felt like a sucker punch to the gut.

"Oh sweetheart," he brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "You know you made a bad choice when you didn't listen to me," Skye nodded quickly and he sighed, "but you still need to have your time-out. I'll sit over on the couch where you can see me, okay?"

Skye's eyes filled with tears again and he couldn't stop himself for pressing a quick kiss to her forehead, "I'm not leaving you sweetheart, I'll be right over here."

Moving away from Skye and into the living room was one of the hardest things he'd ever had to do, but he kept telling himself that it was also the right thing to do. Skye needed to know that her actions had consequences.

He sat on the couch and when he looked back, he saw that Skye was watching him tearfully. She kept a careful eye on him and pulled her knees to her chest so that she could wrap her arms around her legs, making her look even tinier. After a minute, Skye realized that he really wasn't going anywhere and she seemed to relax a little.

The minutes ticked by slowly and it felt like ages before the five minutes were finally up. Once it was complete, he stood up and knelt in front of Skye again. His little girl looked so sad and all he wanted to do was comfort her but he needed to make sure that Skye knew why she had been in trouble, "You know why you were put in time-out, right?"

Skye nodded slowly and didn't meet his eyes, "Because I didn't listen to you. I'm sorry I was bad."

Those words broke him down. Honestly, how could anyone hear that and _not_ offer any comfort? He reached forward and pulled Skye into a tight hug, "You weren't bad Skye, you just made a bad decision, and I forgive you."

Skye sniffled, buried her face against his neck, and squeezed him tightly, "I'll be good."

He rubbed circles onto her back and softly said, "You already are good Skye. I love you sweetheart."

"I love you too daddy." Skye's face was still pressed against his neck and her voice sounded a little too wobbly for his liking so he gently pushed her away and gave her a smile, "I love you more than all the chocolate chip cookies in the whole world."

She gave him a small grin and said, "I love you more than all the blue m&m's in the world."

At his quizzical look, her grin widened and she elaborated, "The blue ones are better than all the other ones."

While he was pretty confident that all the colors tasted the same, he didn't say anything about it and instead, pressed a kiss to Skye's forehead and allowed himself to feel relieved and happy that the situation was over.

"Let's go clean up and get ready for bed."

This time, Skye listened to him immediately. She stayed by his side while they both cleaned up all her toys and she made sure he was in sight while she got ready for bed. If anything, he had thought that his time-out would have made her a little more standoffish but instead, it seemed to make her more clingy for affection.

Once she was ready for bed, he pulled back her blankets for her and she climbed in. He handed her her dolls and tucked her in before she made grabby hands for him. He sat down beside her and leaned against the headboard and she snuggled into his side and handed him Goodnight Moon, her favorite bedtime story.

He waited until she got comfortable before wrapping an arm around her and opening up the book. Before he could start, Skye reached over and softly tugged on his ear, "Will you stay with me 'til I fall asleep?"

Phil debated with himself. They were trying to wean Skye off of that. They didn't want her to have to depend on them to fall asleep and at Jiaying's recommendation, they had been refusing to stay with her for the whole night. But Skye was looking up at him with her big, brown eyes, pleading, and he felt his resolve cracking. After all they'd been through tonight, he couldn't force himself to leave her when all she wanted was for him to stay.

He let out a breath and nodded, "Okay."

Skye leaned up to press a sloppy kiss to his cheek and cuddled closer. He focused back onto the book and started reading to her.

As Skye slowly fell asleep, one hand clinging to his shirt even as her eyes finally shut, he couldn't help but not really care that he probably shouldn't have stayed with her. He was happy, she was happy, and he'd never been accused of being a perfect parent.

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I hope you liked it! I had to put one of my kids in a timeout for the first time in his life (he's a little spoiled) and it took forty-six minutes for the whole ordeal to be over (I timed it, it was ridiculous). Please let me know what you think and thank you so much for reading! :) xx


	72. Skye's First Time-Out Part 2

**Hey guys! TrooperCam asked for a follow-up chapter and it was fun to write Jay again! I hope you guys like it! xx**

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Skye had been hovering around Phil all day. It wasn't unusual for her to follow him around the house to spend time with him but normally she would wander off to play. Today, she insistently stuck by his side. Obviously, she was still feeling the aftereffects of her time-out from yesterday. He had hoped they would have been able to move on from the little episode, after all, most kids had their time-outs and moved on immediately, but it was very apparent to him that there was something about the time-out that had spooked Skye.

He was trying to fix the leak in the kitchen sink when he heard Skye squeal excitedly and scramble away from where she had been sitting beside him. Eager to see what had been able to draw Skye away from him, he quickly sat up and promptly hit his head on the pipe above him. He groaned, slowly inched his way out from under the sink, rubbed his forehead, and looked up to see Melinda standing over him, smirking, with Skye in her arms.

"Daddy hurt his head," Skye loudly whispered to Melinda before hugging herself closer to Mel and nuzzling her face into the crook of her neck.

He let his hand fall away from his forehead and stood up while Mel rubbed Skye's back and said, "I see that baby. He's got a big red spot right in the middle of his forehead."

She reached over and gently poked his forehead and he rolled his eyes and leaned in to give her a kiss, "I'm glad you're back, we really missed you around here."

Skye nodded and he cast a meaningful look at her. He had called Mel last night to briefly fill her in on what had happened but he was relieved that she was finally home so that they could talk about it in person and figure out what to do together.

Mel nodded and tried to get Skye's attention, "I missed you guys too. Did you have fun with your daddy, Skye?"

Phil wasn't surprised when Skye nodded again and didn't mention what had happened yesterday.

Melinda set Skye down and nudged her towards the living room, "Why don't you go build a blanket fort and I'll go pick out some stories to read once I'm done unpacking."

Skye looked unsurely from her to him and, after an encouraging smile from him, she slowly made her way out of the kitchen and into the living room. Phil grabbed Mel's duffel bag and led her upstairs. Once they made it to their room, Phil collapsed onto the bed and Melinda gracefully laid down beside him.

He sighed and she looked over to him and raised her eyebrow. Taking that as the invitation that it was, he immediately started telling her about yesterday, about Skye's behavior and the way she had reacted to the time-out.

Once he was done, Melinda stayed silent for a few moments before saying, "Are you sure she wasn't just upset because she was being punished?"

"That's what I thought at first but it's more than that. She was actually _afraid_. And she's been acting spooked ever since, she hasn't left my side all day until you got here."

Mel rolled onto her side and tucked herself against his side. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer before saying, "We should mention this to Jay."

Sometimes Skye had trouble figuring out what she was feeling and once she talked things over with Jiaying, she was able to come and tell them what she's thinking and how she's feeling. Phil really, really wanted to figure out what was going on with Skye. Even though he had handled the situation well, he was starting to feel guilty for giving Skye a time-out and for triggering something in her that elicited this strong of a negative reaction.

As if she could read his mind, Melinda shifted so that she was leaning on her arm and was looking down at him, "It's not your fault. You didn't know Skye was going to react this way. We'll figure out what's going on, talk to Skye about it, and move on from there."

He sighed and let her words chase his doubts away. Tugging on her shoulder, he pulled her back into his side and hugged her close, "We really did miss you."

He saw her smirk, "I know." She patted his leg, "Now come help me pick out some books to read to Skye."

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Skye focused intently on her crayons, hoping that if she didn't look up at Jay and instead focused on coloring in her picture, her therapist wouldn't mention the one thing she really didn't want to talk about during their session.

Unfortunately, Jay had a knack for getting right to the point.

"So, I hear that you had a little incident Sunday night. Want to tell me about it?"

Jay was sitting on the ground across from her and Skye fidgeted for a few seconds before setting her crayon down and looking up at her, "I had a time-out."

"Why?" Jay studied her in a way that made her squirm a little bit.

Skye fiddled with her shirt sleeve and mumbled, "'Cause I was a bad girl."

Jay reached over and gave her hand a gentle squeeze, "I know for a fact that you're a very good girl. Why do you think you were being bad?"

"'Cause I wasn't listening to daddy and that was bad." Skye still felt guilty for not doing what her dad had told her to do. She didn't know why she did it, she just really wanted to stay up late and have fun with her dad.

Jay tilted her head, "It sounds like you just made a bad choice. That doesn't make you a bad girl Skye."

Skye just shrugged.

"Time-out's aren't very fun, are they?"

Skye vigorously shook her head. She _hated_ time-outs.

"Have you ever had one before?" Jay sounded curious and Skye felt herself relax a little bit.

"No." Her old foster families had mostly just yelled at her or pushed her away, and when they did lock her in her room, she had been relieved to get away from their anger. She had never had a time-out like the one that her dad had given her.

It was quiet for a beat while Jay studied her and Skye bit the inside of her cheek nervously, waiting for Jay to continue her line of questioning.

"What were you feeling during your time-out?"

Skye thought back to Sunday night and tried to describe how she was feeling. She could vividly remember how fast and hard her heart was beating and how her palms had gotten all sweaty when her dad had sat her on the chair in the dining room and had walked away from her, but she couldn't describe how she was feeling. She didn't have the words.

Jay was quiet as Skye got lost in her thoughts and Skye appreciated that. She tried to remember a time before when she had felt the way she had on Sunday night and a memory came to her. "I was… scared, I think."

Jay tilted her head, "Why were you scared?"

"I dunno," Skye shrugged and picked her crayon back up so that she could roll it around in her hands.

Skye wasn't too surprised when Jay gave her a familiar look, the one that said she thought that Skye was either stalling or being stubborn, "Let's try to use our words."

Scrunching up her nose, Skye huffed a little. She picked through her brain and tried to figure out why she was scared. She _really_ wanted to figure it out but she honestly wasn't sure. It was like there was a wall in her mind and every time she tried to break through it to figure out why she reacted the way she did, she just bounced right off of the wall. It was frustrating.

She struggled for words, "Because…. Uh… because…"

Before she knew what was happening, she felt hot tears start to roll down her cheeks and she angrily wiped them away. She didn't want to cry, she wanted to figure out why she had been scared.

"It's okay to cry Skye." Jay's voice was calm and comforting and Skye shook her head angrily, "I don't wanna cry."

"And I don't want to get all sweaty when I go running but it happens. You're crying because you're frustrated and it's a natural reaction." Jay reached into her bag and handed her a tissue before tapping her under her chin to get her attention, "Are you okay?"

Skye sniffled and said, "I'm okay."

Jay gave her a smile, "Good, now let's get to the bottom of this."

After wiping her tears away, Skye took a deep breath and nodded determinedly.

"You said you were scared. When exactly did you feel scared?"

Skye thought back. She had mostly felt confused and a little annoyed when her dad had brought her into the dining room and set her onto the time-out chair. She had started to feel scared when her dad had walked away from her.

She told that to Jay and her therapist looked thoughtful. It took a minute but then Jay got that look on her face that meant she had figured out a tough problem. Jay leaned back on her hands and said, "Skye, I want you to think hard about why you felt scared when your dad was walking away from you."

Skye bit her thumbnail and spoke around it, "But…"

"Take as long as you need. Just relax and try to think real hard about why you might have been scared." Jay grabbed one of the crayons that were scattered around on the floor and started coloring absentmindedly on a blank sheet of paper. Skye appreciated the privacy.

She wasn't entirely sure why she had been so afraid of her dad leaving her alone during her time-out. She remembered feeling upset at being put in time-out but when her dad had left her, she had gone from being upset to being terrified.

It had felt like her dad was leaving her because she had done something bad.

Skye started tearing up again. It had felt like before, when she had done something wrong at a foster home and she ended up back at the orphanage the next day. It reminded her of everyone who has ever walked away from her and with that thought, she started crying again.

Jay handed her another tissue and scooted over so that she could rub comforting circles on her back.

She sniffled and hiccupped, "I was sc-cared 'cause I thought that daddy was gonna l-leave me forever 'cause I was bad."

Saying it out loud made her cry even harder and she crawled over so that she could wrap her arms around Jay and bury her face against her chest. Jay hugged her tightly for a few minutes before gently pushing her away and swiping her thumbs over Skye's cheeks, "You know that your parents love you very much and your dad would never, ever leave you."

Skye rubbed her eyes with her fists and took a deep breath, "I know, but…"

"But you were still scared," Jay gave her an understanding look and reached forward to brush Skye's bangs out of her eyes.

"I think it would be a good idea to tell your parents what you told me, don't you think? I know your mommy and daddy are very worried.

Skye nodded. She hadn't meant to make her parents worry.

Jay lifted her up so that she was standing and nudged her towards the door, "Why don't you go bring them in here?"

After running her hand over her face one more time to catch any stray tears, Skye scurried out of her room and into her parent's room. They were going through their closet and Skye couldn't help but smile a little when she saw her mom trying to get her dad to get rid of one of his old shirts while he stubbornly refused to throw it away.

"Mel, I love that shirt." Her dad grabbed the shirt out of her mom's hands and cuddled it close to his chest. The shirt wasn't anything impressive, it was just dark blue and looked soft and Skye thought she saw a rip on one of the sleeves.

"I haven't seen you wear it in three years."

Her dad opened his mouth, probably to defend himself, but then he saw her and happily said, "Oh look, Skye's here!"

She didn't mind being a distraction for her dad. Her mom glanced over to her and immediately walked over to her with a concerned look on her face, "Are you okay? You look upset baby."

Rather than answering, Skye tugged on her hand and waved over to her dad, "Jay wants you to come talk."

Her parents followed her back into her room and Skye waited for them to sit down on the floor across from Jay before crawling into her dad's lap.

"Skye was able to figure out what happened during her time-out to scare her so much and we thought that it would be beneficial to fill you in," Jay gave her an encouraging look and Skye knew that Jay wanted her to tell her parents what she had told her but Skye suddenly felt shy. She _knew_ her fears were irrational but she couldn't help that she still had them, and she didn't want her parents to think that she didn't trust them because she did.

Turning sideways in her dad's lap, she hid her face in his shirt.

Jay cleared her throat, "Is it okay if I tell them Skye?"

Skye nodded but kept her face hidden. Her dad wrapped an arm around her and hugged her close.

"Well, we found out that the actual time-out wasn't the issue here, it was when you left Skye alone, Phil. She thought that you were going to leave her because she was misbehaving. She's had some past experiences that were triggering."

The matter-of-fact way that Jay explained things made Skye feel better. She peeked up to see her dad's face and he caught her looking at him. He squeezed her a little tighter and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before saying, "Oh sweetheart, you know we would never leave you, right?"

"I know," Skye grabbed a fistful of her dad's shirt and leaned into him.

Her mom reached over and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "Baby, listen to me," Skye turned her head to focus on her mom, "You're a little girl and it's normal for you to occasionally misbehave and your dad and I will have to put you into a time-out, and we do that because we love you and want you to grow up to make good choices and become a respectful and responsible adult."

"Your mom's right. We love you every second of the day, no matter what you do, and we'll never leave you."

Skye let her parent's words comfort her and she felt the heaviness in the air start to go away. She looked up at her dad and grinned a little, "You loved me even when I put nail polish on your toes when you took a nap that one time?"

Her mom chuckled and her dad smiled down at her and tickled her sides, "Yes, even then. Besides, that color really worked with my skin tone."

Skye giggled and snuggled against him, "I love you too."

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Thank you so much for reading! I really appreciate it :) And thank you times infinity to everyone who takes the time to leave a review! I really love hearing your guys' thoughts!

If you've got a prompt for me, please send it in! xx


	73. Skye Finds A Cat

**Hey guys! This was based off of LilNewbornVamp's prompt - "How about a chapter involving Skye and cat?" I don't know why I never thought to write Skye interacting with animals before because I bet it would be the cutest thing ever! Thanks for sending your prompt in and I hope you like it! xx**

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Skye was leaving the playground with Jemma, Fitz, and Nattie when she heard a strange noise. It kinda sounded like a mix between a little baby crying and a bicycle bell and she twirled around to see where the noise was coming from.

Her sister gave her an odd look, "What're you doing?"

"You didn't hear that?" Skye kept looking around to try and find out where the sound had come from.

Fitz automatically started looking around like she was, even though he didn't know what was going on, "Hear what?"

"I don't know…" Skye trailed off before spotting movement over by the chain-link fence that went around the playground. She immediately sprinted towards it.

The closer she got, the more obvious it became that the movement was being caused by a little cat. It was meowing and crying and Skye felt her heart clench at the pitiful sound. The poor kitty's collar was caught on the fence and she was stuck.

Skye instinctively stepped forward to help the cat but a hand snaked out and grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Don't touch it Skye, it doesn't seem happy," Nattie was carefully studying the cat. Skye gave it a closer look and had to agree with her sister. The little cat didn't look very happy, but Skye wouldn't be happy either if she was in the cat's position.

She tried to pull out of her sister's grasp, "It needs help!"

Fitz nodded in agreement and Jemma spoke up, "It doesn't seem feral."

Skye didn't know what that meant but Fitz was nodding along like Jemma had made perfect sense so she decided not to question it.

Nattie was still staring at the cat and had her thinking face on. Skye struggled to escape her sister but Natasha's grip on her was firm. After a moment, Nattie seemed to come to a decision and pulled Skye back a step further away from the cat, "You three stay back here, I'm going to try to help it."

The cat let out a particularly pitiful meow and Skye pushed her sister towards it. She wanted it to be free as soon as possible.

The cat's fur was long and shiny. It was all black except for the white spots covering her two back paws and half of her right ear. It had dark brown eyes, almost black, and a light pink nose. It's bright red collar was caught on a part of the fence that was coming undone and Skye hoped that the cat wasn't hurt.

She eagerly watched as Natasha cautiously stepped towards the cat. She had successfully taken four steps towards it before the animal noticed her. It immediately narrowed its eyes at her and studied her for a few long moments before hissing at her.

The sound didn't faze Nattie though, she just paused for a minute or two before slowly taking another step towards the cat.

By the time Natasha was a step away from the cat, the cat was hissing continuously and had even swiped its paw at her. Skye was amazed that Natasha still seemed determined to help it.

When Nattie reached down to untangle the cat's collar, the kitty tried to scratch her and Natasha easily evaded it's paw.

Her sister sighed and walked back over to them, "Maybe we should call animal control."

"That sounds like a good idea," Jemma agreed.

Skye inspected the cat. She could see its chest moving rapidly and it was looking around wildly. It was obviously terrified and Skye felt awful.

While Natasha and her friends were preoccupied with looking up the number for animal control, Skye quietly snuck away from them and approached the cat.

She moved slowly and when she was about five steps away from it, the cat noticed her. It studied her just like it did Nattie and Skye stayed still so that it could make up its mind about her. A low, desperate meow rumbled from the cat's chest. Skye didn't let it deter her. She sat down on the grass and slowly scooted closer to it, "It's okay kitty, I just wanna help you."

Finally, her sister noticed what she was doing, "Skye! Get back here right now!"

"I can help it Nattie. I'll be careful, I promise." She only gave her sister a small part of her attention and kept the rest on the cat, who was staring at her intensely as she slowly got closer to it.

"I don't care how careful you are, you can still get hurt! That cat doesn't seem to like…" Skye was close enough to reach out to the cat, so she carefully stretched out one of her hands near the cat's face and let it sniff it. After a second, the cat carefully looked up at her before pushing her head against her hand. Skye guessed that that meant that they were friends now. "...Humans." Nattie trailed off.

Skye smiled triumphantly.

She scratched the cat behind the ears and it leaned into her hand a little further.

All of a sudden, a new sound came from the cat and she jumped in surprise, "It's purring! Nattie, listen!"

"Of course the cat likes you," Natasha mumbled.

"I'm gonna free you from the fence now, okay kitty?" Skye spoke to the kitty, enunciating her words and speaking slowly. She was pretty sure it didn't know what she was saying, but maybe it did understand what she meant, because the cat stopped rubbing her head against her hand and stayed still.

All it took was a quick twist of her wrist for the cat to be free and, instead of bolting away like Skye thought it was going to do, the cat stepped forward and rubbed its head against her knee.

Skye giggled and scratched it behind the ears, "You're welcome."

"Aw, it's so cute!" Jemma came forward and crouched down to pet the cat but when she got too close, the cat gave her hand an angry look and a low growl rumbled from its chest.

Jemma yanked her hand back, "Very rude."

Skye pointed to the cat, "That's not very nice, kitty. Jemma and Nattie aren't gonna hurt you."

The cat just butted its head against Skye's knee in response. It rubbed its head against her knee until Skye scratched it behind its ears again, then, it started purring loudly.

Skye looked back to her sister, "Does it have a home?"

She couldn't help but hope that it didn't. She had always wanted a pet.

"It looks like someone's been feeding it and it has a collar so it probably does. Does it have a tag?" Natasha knew well enough to not try to approach the cat to look for herself.

Skye kept scratching the cat with one hand and searched for a tag on the collar with the other. When she reached the part of the collar that the tag's usually attached to, all she found was the loop where the tag had probably been. "I think it fell off."

Natasha sighed, "You three stay right here where I can see you. I'm going to go ask if anyone knows who this cat belongs to."

Her sister walked off to ask around the playground while Jemma and Fitz sat down a few feet away from her.

The cat lied down in front of her, purring happily, and Skye ran her fingers over its back. "I wonder what its name is. Oh, is it a girl or a boy cat?"

"I can figure that out. Just roll it onto its back," Jemma sat up on her knees so she could peer closer at them.

Skye kept scratching the little kitty with one hand and gently pushed it down so that it rolled over with the other. It was still purring loudly, it kinda sounded like a motorcycle, and didn't seem to mind that Skye was basically pushing her over.

After a quick second, Jemma hummed and said, "It's a girl."

She stopped scratching the cat to turn to her friend, "How do you know?"

"I learned it when we first found our cat and took her to the vet," Jemma said but didn't clarify as to how she knew. Skye would have questioned her further if the cat hadn't started walking slow circles around her, making sure to rub the side of her body across Skye.

Skye giggled again before lifting the cat up and situating it in her lap, "You're getting fur all over my clothes and I don't think my mommy is gonna be happy about that."

The cat settled down in her arms, still purring loudly, before closing its eyes. Skye marveled at how quickly she could fall asleep.

"Well?" Fitz asked.

Skye scrunched her nose up at him and tried not to move around to much so that she didn't disturb her new friend, "Well what?"

Fitz gave her a look, "What are you going to call her? She likes you the most so you should name her."

Skye studied the sleeping ball of fur in her arms. Even though she really hoped that the kitty didn't already have a home so that she could keep her, if the cat already had a family, then that meant she already had a name. She knew how annoying it could be to have people call you by the wrong name and she didn't want to do that the her new friend.

"I'm not sure. She probably already has a name," Skye couldn't stop herself from rubbing a finger under the cat's chin. The cat's eyes stayed closed but her purring got even louder.

"You could give her a temporary name until we find her family," Jemma suggested.

After thinking about it, Skye agreed. She didn't want to keep calling her 'the cat', so she considered the kitty in her arms and tried to think of the perfect name. She thought through all the names she knew and smiled when she thought of the perfect one.

Sitting up a little straighter, she regarded her friends and grinned, "Her name is Xena, 'cause she's a warrior princess and this kitty is tough, like her."

Her friends glanced at each other before studying the cat for a few seconds and finally smiling. Jemma nodded, "It's perfect."

While her parents said she was still a little too young to watch the movie, Nattie had told her all about Xena one night after her sister had watched the movie for the billionth time and Skye knew that the name was perfect for this cat.

Even though the cat was resting, Skye couldn't resist picking it up and holding it so that their faces were close. Xena dangled in front of her but didn't seem to mind. "You hear that? Your temporary name is Xena. Do you like it?"

Xena's only response was to yawn in her face, but Skye took that as a sign that Xena liked her new name.

Nattie came back over as Skye set Xena back on her lap. Xena turned around in a small circle before lying down and resting her head on Skye's knee.

She looked up at her sister, "Did you find anything out?"

"No, these people have never seen the cat before," Natasha looked around uncertainly for a second before motioning for them to stand up, "C'mon. I guess we can take it home with us and see if mom knows what to do."

Skye smiled widely. She was still hoping that she'd be able to keep Xena. "Nattie, her name is Xena."

Natasha's lips twitched up into a small smile, "That's a great name маленькая звезда."

Fitz and Jemma stood up and Skye considered Xena for a moment before gently lifting her up and setting her on the ground so that she could stand. Xena let out an unhappy sound before yawning dramatically. Skye was very relieved to see that Xena wasn't going to run away.

She took an experimental few steps forward and smiled when she saw that Xena followed after her. Natasha gave the cat a dirty look, obviously she hadn't forgiven it yet for trying to scratch her, and led them back home.

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"Mommy! We found a cat!"

Skye waved as her friends disappeared inside Jemma's house and turned around in time to see her mom poke her head out of the kitchen. She stayed out on the front porch, just in case her mom didn't want Xena inside, and waited to see what her mom would say.

Natasha walked inside, making sure the keep a couple feet between her and Xena, and then quickly made her way upstairs, mumbling about temperamental felines.

Her mom was walking towards her and Skye whispered down to Xena, "You better be nice to Mommy, she's doesn't like bad attitudes."

"Where did you find it?" Her mom stopped in front of her and kneeled down to give Xena a better look.

"At the playground. She was caught in the fence and I saved her! Nattie asked if anyone knew who it belonged to but nobody knew. And she doesn't have a tag. I named her Xena," Skye spoke in a rush.

Xena was looking up at her mom carefully and Skye held her breath and hoped that Xena didn't do anything naughty, "Xena doesn't like people, I don't think."

Her mom gave the cat a hard stare, "She seems to like you well enough."

Skye felt pride swell up in her chest at her mom's words. She didn't know why Xena liked her and didn't like Nattie or her friends, but it made her feel special. She just hoped that Xena was nice to her mom, because if she wasn't, there was no way her mom would let her keep her.

Her mom didn't reach for Xena, she just kept looking over her closely, before she stood up. Luckily, Xena hadn't growled or hissed at her like she had at everyone else.

"Can we keep her?" Skye asked her mom hopefully.

"What if Xena already has a home Skye? I bet her family already misses her." Her mom wrapped an arm around her and guided her, and Xena, into the house.

Skye pouted, "But _I_ wanna be her family."

Her mom chuckled and reached forward to brush her bangs out of her eyes, "I know, but let's see if we can find her real home before we move forward."

Skye bent down to lift Xena into her arms, pushed her face into the soft fur, and mumbled, "Okay."

"Baby, look at me," Her mom waited for Skye to look up at her before continuing, "Since Xena has a collar and is well-fed, I think she already has a home. I don't want you to get your hopes up about us keeping her. She might already have a family that loves her and are waiting for her to come home."

Skye just held Xena a little tighter. The little cat squeaked but seemed content to be hugged.

"I know that if you were lost, you would want to come home to us, right?" Her mom asked her gently.

Skye nodded reluctantly. Even though she really wanted to keep Xena for herself, she knew that if she ever got separated from her family, she would be very sad and scared and would want to get back to them.

She held Xena so that they were facing each other and determinedly stated, "I'm gonna find your family for you Xena, I promise. Don't worry, I'll get you back to your mommy and daddy."

Her mom gave her shoulder a supportive squeeze, "Good girl. Now, let's go ask around the neighborhood."

Skye quickly ran into the kitchen, gulped down a glass of water, and offered some to Xena before they were out the door and wandering around the neighborhood, knocking on doors to see if anyone recognized Xena.

They'd only talked to a couple of their neighbors before one of them pointed them down to the end of their street. Xena had stayed close to Skye during the whole search, but as they approached the cheerful looking, pastel yellow house, Xena ran in front of them and leapt up onto the front porch. Skye felt her heart clench when she realized that Xena recognized her house and that this was probably her home.

Kneeling down, Skye ran her fingers through Xena's long fur while her mom knocked on the door. A frazzled looking middle-aged man opened the door. He had a toddler on his hip and when the little girl saw Xena, she wiggled and squirmed until her dad set her down so that she could run towards the cat, "Daddy! They found Luna!"

Skye was nervous that Xena, or Luna, was going to hiss at the little girl, but when the toddler picked the cat up in her arms and twirled her around, Skye heard Luna start to purr loudly.

Not sure what to do now that she couldn't pet Luna, Skye wrapped her arms around her mom's waist. Her mom ran a comforting hand down her back and said, "My daughter found her over by the playground. I'm assuming she's yours?"

"Yes, we've been looking all over for her! Thank you so much for bringing her home. Jessie's been worried sick," The dad motioned to where his daughter, Jessie, was hugging Luna tightly. Even though Skye was really sad that she wouldn't be able to keep the cat, she couldn't help but smile at how happy Jessie was that she had her cat back.

Jessie laughed happily and set Luna down. The cat immediately started circling the little girl's legs, rubbing her head up against her calves and purring loudly, "Luna's my bestest friend in the whole world!"

"She's a good kitty," Skye said sadly.

Before she knew what was happening, Jessie was throwing her arms around her in a tight hug, "Thank you!"

Skye blinked and tensed before relaxing a little and patting Jessie's back, "You're welcome. Xe- I mean Luna really missed you."

Jessie squeezed her tightly for a few more seconds before stepping back. Skye felt soft fur brush along her legs and leaned down to say goodbye to Luna, "Bye Luna, I told you I would find your family, didn't I?"

Luna butted her head against Skye's leg until she reached down and scratched the cat behind her ears, "I'll miss you."

She forced herself to stand up and take a step back from Luna and her little family.

Jessie picked Luna up and held her close before exclaiming, "You can come back and say hi to her, right daddy?"

"Of course! I'm surprised she let you touch her, Luna is very picky about who she becomes friends with. You must be very special." Jessie's dad gave her a warm smile and Skye smiled happily back at him.

Her mom led her off of their porch and Skye heard Jessie shout after them, "Bye bye! Thanks for bringing Luna home!"

Skye turned back to wave and give Jessie one more smile.

As they walked back home, her mom slipped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into her side, "Are you okay?"

Skye let out a long sigh and thought about how happy Jessie was when she was reunited with Luna. She nodded, "Yeah. I'm happy we found Luna's family."

"I'm proud of you baby, I know you really wanted to keep her." Her mom leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head and Skye smiled up at her, "Can we go see her soon?"

Her mom laughed and led her into their house, "Of course we can."

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If you've got a prompt, please send it in! (I seriously love new prompts, they make me so happy for some reason lol) and thank you so much for reading! I hope you guys enjoyed it! xx :)


	74. Natasha and Phil Hang Out

**Hey guys! This chapter's based off of eonkennedy89's prompt: "How about some Nattie and Phil dad-daughter time?" It's a little short but very cute and it's fun to explore Nat and Phil's relationship some more!**

 **University just started so that's why it took a little longer to update but I'm loving all my classes so far! Anyone else starting school again? I hope you like it and thanks for reading! :) x**

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Natasha was reading a book on her bed when she heard her and Skye's names being called from downstairs by her dad. She dropped her book, it was an assigned book from her literature class and she'd much rather be reading one of the books she had chosen from the library, and walked to her door. She heard Skye's little feet quickly padding down the hallway and opened her door just in time to reach out and grab her little sister around the waist.

Skye squealed in surprise and Nat twirled her around before setting her back down and saying, "Race ya."

They both took off down the stairs and into the kitchen, where their dad was waiting for them. Natasha reached him first and Skye huffed, "No fair, your legs are longer than mine."

"Yeah, but you're younger and more energetic," Nat reached out to pinch Skye's cheeks and her sister stuck her tongue out at her.

Their dad threw his hands up, "Oh, to be young again."

Skye looked up at him and patted his arm comfortingly, "It's okay Daddy, you aren't _that_ old."

Natasha chuckled and said, "What's up dad?"

"I was just wondering if you guys wanted to help me with dinner." He motioned towards all the food lying out on the counter and gave them a hopeful look.

"I'm playing spies with Alice and her friends daddy," Skye said, before quickly wrapping her arms around their dad's waist in a fast hug before bolting off.

Her dad quirked an eyebrow at her, "They must be in the middle of a very important mission. Are you up for it?"

Natasha grabbed one of the aprons from where they hung on a hook by the pantry and put it on, "Let's do this."

Her dad gave her a wide smile and she returned it happily.

Sometimes it was difficult to find quality time to spend with her parents. With all of her siblings and their demanding jobs, whenever they had free time, it was usually spent as a family, and while she loved hanging out with everyone, it was nice to have one on one time with her dad.

Her dad reached into a drawer to grab a knife for her and she asked him, "What're we making?"

"Spaghetti and meatballs! Very easy, just a lot of chopping." He handed her a knife and an onion and guided her to the cutting board, "Could you cut this up for me?"

She nodded and stared at the onion for a few seconds before helplessly looking up at her dad, "Uh…"

He chuckled and gently nudged her over, "Here, I'll show you."

She watched him dice up the onion and she took over when she felt like she knew what she was doing.

It was quiet for a few moments while she cut up the onion and he poured tomato sauce into a big pot, but it was nice. It was a companionable silence and Natasha was enjoying it.

Once she was done cutting up the onion, her dad slid a green pepper her way and she went to work on that.

"How'd that math test go?" Her dad glanced at her as he started mixing half of the onion into the meatballs.

Natasha made a face and cut into the green pepper with a little too much force, "Not as well as I hoped it would go."

Math was her least favorite subject. No matter how hard she studied, it seemed like she never got a complete grasp on it.

"I'm sorry Nat, I know how hard you studied for it." Her dad's voice was sympathetic and soft and for some reason, she kind of felt like she was going to cry. Math was a touchy subject for her. She tried so hard and it seemed like all of her time and effort _never_ paid off. She just wanted to be able to bring a test home and proudly show her parents how well she did.

Even though she kept her eyes on the green pepper in front of her and pushed her tears back, her dad must have sensed how upset she was with his freaky dad-powers, because he squeezed her shoulder and said, "I'm proud of you Sweet Pea."

She gave him a bewildered look, "I got a D dad."

"But you never give up. You study like crazy for every test, no matter what, and I really admire that about you Tasha."

Natasha had to push her tears back again because hearing that from her dad made her feel a big jumble of emotions.

"Thanks dad." Her voice was a little wobbly but she cleared her throat and regained her composure.

"Of course kiddo," He looked over to make sure that she was alright before changing the subject, "You have any plans for this weekend?"

She went back to cutting up the green pepper and launched into her weekend plans, telling her dad how Clint was dragging her and the rest of the guys to the animal shelter to volunteer at the Adoption Drive. He laughed and warned her not to bring home a new furry friends and to keep an eye on Clint, because he had a habit of doing just that.

They fell into an easy conversation about what her friends were up to and what she was learning in the classes she actually liked while they finished up the sauce, made the salad, and put the garlic bread into the oven.

She was demonstrating a new dance move she had finally mastered and her dad was slowly stirring the boiling noodles when she stopped, looked at her dad, and tilted her head.

It only took a couple seconds of her staring at him wordlessly for him to break the silence and toss a slice of cucumber from the salad bowl at her, "What's going on in that mind of yours?"

She caught the cucumber and ate it quickly before shrugging and grinning, "I dunno, I'm just really happy you're my dad."

It was true. Nat knew how lucky she was to have a father like hers. She knew a lot of people who didn't have good relationships with their fathers or they weren't close with them and Natasha was happy to have a dad who was also her friend. She liked that she could go to him if there was something serious going on in her life and that she could tell him about her day and he would always give her his full attention, no matter what.

She didn't tell him how much she appreciated him enough but she hoped he knew.

Her dad reached out and gave the end of her ponytail a gentle and affectionate tug, "Well, I'm really happy you're my daughter, so the feeling's mutual."

Usually, she tended to shy away from moments like these. Expressing emotions made her uneasy and she always tried to cover it up with a joke, but she was enjoying it right now. It felt nice.

"Maybe I could help with dinner tomorrow too?" She casually asked while she fiddled with her fingers.

Just because she was enjoying the moment didn't mean she was any less awkward at expressing herself than she normally was.

Luckily, her dad excelled at making her feel comfortable. He smiled widely and started talking rapidly, "I'd love that. We could make barbeque ribs or meatloaf… oh! Remind me to show you how to make my world famous mashed potatoes. It took me years to perfect that recipe…"

Her dad kept jabbering on about how his mashed potatoes were what really won her mom over on their first date and Natasha happily listened to his exaggerated story while they both put the finishing touches on their dinner.

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Please let me know what you thought! Reviews make me happy :) xx


	75. Bucky Understands Why Skye's Afraid

**Hey guys! This one-shot is based off of Charlotteredmond99's prompt: "I was wondering if you could write a bit about Skye interacting with Bucky a bit more. Like maybe Skye is in a minor car accident again and has flashbacks to the big one and only Bucky really understands her in her mind and manages to get her to open up about it."**

 **I know my lil Skye has had really bad luck with cars but I hope this line of writing isn't boring yet. If you've got a prompt for this universe, please send it in! I love recieving new prompts :) I hope you guys like it and thank you so much for reading! : xx**

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After hastily saying goodbye to Ms. Hill for the weekend, Skye ran towards the parking lot where her mom was lounging by their car waiting for her. She smiled widely and threw her arms around her mom in a tight hug, "Hi Mommy!"

Her mom hugged her back before stepping back and giving her a onceover, "Skye?"

She smiled brightly up at her, "Yeah?"

"What happened to your clothes? And what's in your hair?" Her mom tried to gently run her fingers through one of her pigtails and Skye winced when her fingers got caught on some tangles.

Skye played with her fingers and shrugged, "Well, Fitz brought ring-pops for me and Jemma-"

"Jemma and I," her mom interrupted.

"No Mommy, they were for me and Jemma, not you!" Her mom sighed but didn't say anything so she continued, "But he forgot one for Lincoln! So I shared mine with him but it got all sticky and wouldn't come off of my hands! I tried to use a napkin but that didn't work either, so I tried to wipe 'em on my shirt but that _still_ didn't work. But Ms. Hill helped me get all clean again!"

Her mom looked up towards the heavens and slightly shook her head, "And your hair?"

Skye shrugged, "I dunno."

She ran her fingers through one of her pigtails to try to untangle it but only succeeded in pulling her pigtail halfway down her head.

Her mom affectionately tapped the tip of her nose and ushered her into the backseat, "You're taking a shower when you get home."

Skye sighed dramatically and pouted a little as her mom buckled her in but brightened up when her mom played the Tangled soundtrack for her.

She was humming along to one of the songs when it happened. They were stopped at red light, waiting to turn out of the school parking lot, when Skye heard the high pitched squeal and then another car hit the back of theirs. Skye lurched forward in her booster seat and screamed.

"Skye, are you alright?" Her mom twisted around in the driver's seat and anxiously looked her over.

Looking down at herself, Skye made sure she was okay before nodding at her mom. Her hands were shaking and her heart was beating really fast but she wasn't hurt.

Her mom let out a deep breath and reached back to pat her knee before throwing a dirty look to the driver behind them and muttering under her breath.

Skye tried to get her hands to stop shaking while her mom pulled over to the edge of the road, stopped the car, hopped out, and opened the door to the backseat.

"Are you sure you're okay baby?" Her mom's hands swept over her, making sure she was alright for herself, and Skye reached out to wrap her arms around her mom's neck only to be stopped by her seatbelt. She whimpered and made grabby hands until her mom unbuckled her and pulled her into a hug.

"We're okay, see? It was just a little fender bender." Her mom whispered against her temple and rubbed soothing circles onto her back.

A voice interrupted them, "I'm so sorry! I didn't see you until it was too late to stop! Is anyone hurt?"

Her mom leaned back, probably to answer the man from the other car, but Skye wouldn't let go. Her mom hauled her into her arms, shut the back door, and turned to the man, "We're fine."

Skye glanced over to see a young man rubbing the back of his neck and examining the front of his car. There was a little dent and one of his lights were cracked. He gave them a sheepish look, "Figures, the first time I pick my little sister up from school this happens. I'm so sorry!"

Her mom nodded and asked for the guy's insurance information and Skye tuned them both out. Their car had a teeny tiny little dent on the back of it and Skye stared at it. It was _really_ small, maybe the size of her fist, and was nothing, but she couldn't get her heart to stop feeling like it was going to crash through her chest.

Skye did her breathing exercises that Jay had given her until her mom and the man stopped talking and the man apologized over and over again until her mom waved him off and got back into the car. Even then, her heart was still beating a little faster than normal and her left hand wouldn't stop shaking.

Her mom buckled her into her booster seat and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "Everything's okay, we're fine baby."

Skye nodded and clenched her left hand into a fist so her mom didn't see it shake.

* * *

Skye woke up with tears in her eyes, covered in sweat and breathing erratically. She sat up in bed, pulled Alice close to her chest with one hand, and used the other one to rub her eyes.

It was stupid to be so upset over a tiny little car accident but she couldn't help it. Now all she could think about were the previous accidents she had been in and how awful they were. How easily her bones had broken and bruises had formed on her skin and people had died.

She threw her blankets off of her and had one foot on the floor with the intent to run into her parent's room but paused. On one hand, she knew her mom and dad wouldn't mind her running to them when she was scared, but on the other hand, she didn't want them to worry about her, especially when it was about something so stupid.

Either way, she didn't want to sleep alone, so instead of going to her parent's room, she went to her sister's instead. She snuck into Nattie's room often enough that her parents wouldn't think anything was out of the ordinary.

After quietly opening her sister's door and making sure to push extra slow when she knew it would creak, she ran over to Natasha's bed.

Her sister was curled up in a ball under her blankets and Skye climbed onto the bed and wiggled next to her so that she was cuddled close. Nattie let out a deep breath but didn't wake up.

Reaching out, Skye blindly searched for Natasha's hand and once she found it, she intertwined their pinkies. She shut her eyes, actively focused on not thinking about cars, and slowly fell asleep to the sound of Nattie's gentle breathing.

* * *

She woke up to the feeling of fingers running through her hair.

It didn't feel like she had gotten any sleep and she made a sound of discontent and scrunched her nose up before opening her eyes.

"What's wrong маленькая звезда?" Nattie reached out to smooth a fingertip over the wrinkle between Skye's eyebrows that she got when she was unhappy.

Scooting closer to her sister, she burrowed into her side and shut her eyes, "'M sleepy."

Nattie gave her a hug and continued to play with her hair, "Didn't sleep well?"

Skye shook her head and pressed her face against her sister's shoulder.

"Are you upset about the accident from yesterday?"

It took a moment for Skye to respond. She thought about telling Nattie that she _was_ still upset and that she kept seeing images from her previous accidents and all the bad things that could have happened, but she decided not to. She didn't want her sister to worry about her and she was hoping that she would be over all of this soon enough that it wouldn't even matter.

Finally, she opened her eyes, looked up at her sister, and tried to sound earnest, "No, I'm just sleepy."

Nattie didn't look like she believed her, "Maybe you should talk to mom and dad."

"I'm _fine_ Nattie. See?" She sat up and tried to look awake and alert, "I'm not sleepy anymore."

Her sister gave her a doubtful look but didn't press the subject. Instead, she changed the subject completely, "Let's go get some breakfast, I'm starving."

Skye wasn't hungry but she nodded and held onto her sister's hand as they made their way downstairs.

Her dad was placing a plate full of toast and big bowl of fruit onto the table and looked up when they entered the dining room, "Good morning girls! You slept in Skye, I missed you down here."

Her dad didn't mean anything by his comment, but for some reason, Skye was sick of her family commenting on her unusual behavior. She didn't know if it was her exhaustion or her frayed nerves but whatever it was, it made her snap a little, "I'm fine!" Realizing that she had said that louder than she probably should have, she gave her dad an apologetic look and made sure to speak at a normal volume when she said, "I mean, I was just tired."

Natasha shared a look with their dad and that just made her even more irritated. Huffing a little, she sat down at the table and shoved a strawberry into her mouth just to have something to do.

Her dad walked over and pressed a kiss to the top of her head and sat down next to her. Skye was glad he didn't mention her outburst, even though she could tell he wanted to.

* * *

Skye was playing with some legos in Natasha's room when there was a knock on the door. She looked up to see Bucky walk into the room with a smile on his face.

He waved at them, "Hey guys. What's up?"

Skye jumped up and ran over to give him a hug, "Hi Bucky! Nattie didn't say you were coming over!"

She rested her chin on his hip so that she could smile brightly up at him. He playfully pinched her cheek and laughed, "I just decided to stop by."

Skye giggled and pushed his hands away from her cheeks, "Wanna play legos with me? I'm building a spaceship!"

"I'd love to," Bucky settled down beside her and studied her half-built spaceship.

She heard Nattie slide off her her bed and say, "I'm gonna go grab some snacks." She missed the meaningful look that her sister gave Bucky. She nodded absentmindedly and shoved half of her legos over to Bucky so that he could use them.

He was constructing the top of her spaceship when he asked, "What's new with you Princess?"

Skye glanced over at him but he continued to stack legos on top of each other, biting his lip in concentration while his prosthetic arm made soft whirring sounds. If anyone could understand what she was going through right now, it was him.

She squirmed uncomfortably for a few seconds before sighing and saying, "Someone hit our car yesterday."

Bucky gave her a concerned look and Skye focused intensely at the legos in her hand, even though she wasn't doing anything with them, "Did anyone get hurt?"

She shook her head, "Nah, it was a teeny tiny accident."

"That's good," Bucky gave her a relieved grin.

She pinched a lego between her fingers and kept her eyes on her half-finished spaceship, "But…"

Bucky waited for her to continue but her throat got all tight and she couldn't get the rest of her words out. Her initial bravery disappeared and she started to tear up. This was so dumb.

Bucky set the spaceship aside and gave her his full attention, "But it still scared you, huh?"

Skye rubbed her eyes with her fists, sniffled, and nodded.

"Oh Princess," Bucky pulled her into a tight hug and she crawled onto his lap, wrapped her arms around him, pressed her face against his neck, and let out a soft sob.

He squeezed her tight and murmured comforting words until she forced herself to stop crying. She roughly ran a hand over her face and said, "I'm being stupid."

Bucky leaned back so that he could see her and seriously said, "You're not being stupid for feeling the way you do."

Skye gave him a disbelieving look and he pulled her in for another hug. She rested her head against his shoulder and tried to calm down.

It was quiet for a few moments, the only sounds the rustling of her shirt as Bucky rubbed her back and the soft hum of his arm.

"I think I know what you're going through," Bucky cleared his throat and swallowed thickly before continuing and Skye listened carefully, "Sometimes, when someone hits the brakes a little too hard or a big semi-truck passes me, it terrifies me and brings me right back to my accident. It's been years but I still have nightmares and flashbacks."

Skye blinked up at him and grabbed a fistful of his shirt, "Really?"

He nodded and gave her a serious look, "Really. I'll go months without thinking about it but then something will happen and it feels like I _just_ went through it." He put his hands on her shoulders and made sure she was paying attention, "Some days are worse than others but you gotta keep in mind that your family and friends are here to support you and help you through those bad days."

Skye looked down at Bucky's shirt and mumbled, "I don't want them to worry 'bout me."

"I know, believe me. Sometimes it feels like you require too much work, doesn't it?"

Skye started to tear up again. Bucky was saying exactly what she was thinking. Sometimes it felt like she needed too much of her parent's attention and she didn't want to ask for anymore because she didn't want to be a burden. Especially now, when she was so upset over something that seemed so small and dumb to her.

Bucky swiped his thumb over her cheek to catch a tear that escaped, "It's not true Princess, you're _never_ too much work. Your family loves you and would do anything for you because they _want_ to be there for you."

She thought about Bucky's words and eventually nodded. She _knew_ he was right, but sometimes she forgot.

Bucky gave her a smile, "I'm here for you too."

She wobbly smiled back at him and leaned up to give him another hug, "Thanks Bucky. I'm here for you too."

He laughed and patted her back, "Thank you Princess. Do you feel a little better?"

She took a moment to take stock of how she felt and was relieved to find out that she _did_ feel better. Talking to Bucky had helped, especially because he understood what she was going through, and she felt much calmer than before. Bucky's encouraging words had given her some confidence too, and she thought that maybe later, she would tell her mom and dad how she was feeling.

"I feel a lot better."

He grinned and nudged her off of his lap, "Good. Now, let's finish up this spaceship. I'm very excited to see how it turns out."

She giggled, wiped her nose on her shirt sleeve, and started stacking legos on top of each other.

Just then, Natasha breezed back into the room. Her sister looked her over before giving Bucky a questioning look. Bucky nodded and Nattie smiled before Skye gave her a confused look, "Where're the snacks Nattie?"

Her sister glanced at her empty hands, "Oh. Right! Be right back."

Nattie quickly exited the room again and Skye gave Bucky a conspiratorial smile, "She's silly."

Bucky finished the top of the spaceship and handed it to her, "She sure is."

* * *

I ! love ! writing ! Bucky ! Seriously, I love writing Bucky and Skye's cute little relationship! Thank you so much for reading and let me know what you thought! :) x


	76. Skye Goes to the Zoo with Nat & Sharon

**Hey guys! This chapter took forever to write cause I had to do much more research than I normally do for the rest of the chapters, so I hope you like it! My friend Weirdfandomfangirl on tumblr sent this prompt in, and it's: "Sharon and Natasha go with Skye to the zoo for the first time."**

 **Thank you so much for reading and if you have a prompt for me, please send it in! :) xx**

* * *

"Mommy! Daddy! You said we were gonna go to the zoo _today_!" Skye whined and tugged on her dad's hand to get his attention. It was a Saturday and usually that meant that they went and did fun things as a family but today, both of her parents were heading into work.

Her dad grabbed his car keys while her mom pulled her hair back into a ponytail and said, "I know baby but we can't today. Maybe we can go next weekend."

Skye crossed her arms and stuck out her bottom lip, "But you _said_ we could go today, remember? We wrote it on the calendar!" Skye pointed to the calendar hanging on their fridge to further her point.

Her dad kneeled down in front of her, "I'm sorry but we can't go to the zoo today sweetheart. Your mom and I need to go to work, it's an emergency."

Skye knew that they had to go into work but they had _said_ they would take her to the zoo today. They had made the plans three weeks ago and Skye had even written it onto the calendar with her sparkly blue gel pen. She had been looking forward to seeing all the animals for weeks.

Nattie spoke up from the living room, "Sharon and I can take you to the zoo."

Skye looked over to where her sister was leaning against the wall and raised an eyebrow.

Her dad smiled, "Great! Hear that Skye? You can still go to the zoo."

"But… you and Mommy were supposed to come," Skye put a hand on her dad's shoulder and pouted.

Nattie came over and tickled her sides for a second before lifting her up and setting her on her hip, "C'mon маленькая звезда, we'll have a bunch of fun. Adults are boring anyways."

Natasha stuck her tongue out at their parents and her dad grinned and pressed a quick kiss to Nattie's forehead, "Watch it."

Skye twirled her sister's hair around her finger and her dad focused on her, "You be good for your sister okay?"

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and she nodded solemnly. She was happy that her sister was going to take her to the zoo but she was still disappointed that her parents couldn't come with her.

Her mom blew kisses to the two of them and then her parents were gone and it was just the two of them. Nattie set her back down and nudged her towards the stairs, "You go get dressed and I'll call Sharon."

* * *

"You ready to have the time of your life Cupcake?" Sharon helped her out of her booster seat and shut the car door for her.

Skye's disappointment about her parents not being able to come with them had steadily decreased the closer they got to the zoo. There were a bunch of families heading from the parking lot towards the entrance gate and Skye impatiently motioned for Natasha and Sharon to hurry up, "I'm ready Shary! Let's go!"

Nattie chuckled and quickly reached out to grab her hand, "Stay close to me or Sharon at all times, okay Skye? We don't want to get separated."

Skye nodded seriously before smiling and tugging on her sister's hand, "Come _on_ Nattie!"

Natasha gave Sharon a dramatic look, "Kids these days. They've got no patience."

"It's a cryin' shame," Sharon responded with an over-the-top southern drawl before taking pity on Skye and leading them towards the entrance. Skye tugged and pulled on her sister's hand until they reached the gate and Nattie talked to the bored-looking teenager in the ticket booth.

Sharon tapped her on the shoulder, "Hey Cupcake, did you know that this is one of the good zoos?"

Skye scrunched up her nose in confusion. She thought that all zoos were good zoos. "Whaddya mean?"

"Well, this zoo is a rehabilitation and conservation zoo, so once the animals are rehabilitated and can survive on their own, they're released back into the wild." Sharon proudly motioned to the big sticker plastered on the side of the building they were buying tickets from that stated that the zoo _was_ a rehabilitation and conservation zoo.

"What's rehabation mean?" Skye stuttered over the big word and drew her eyebrows in in concentration.

"It means that the zoo takes in hurt animals and makes them all better," Sharon explained.

"So it's kinda like a big animal hospital?" Skye curiously asked Sharon.

Shary considered that before nodding, "Kinda."

She immediately thought of turtles with superhero bandaids and koalas talking to therapists like Jiaying and giggled.

Nattie turned away from the ticket stand and smiled at them, "Where do you want to go first?"

"Cats!" Skye jumped up and down and waited impatiently while Sharon and Natasha tried to read the zoo's map. After a healthy debate over directions, Natasha pointed to one of the walkways and Skye pulled them along.

Skye knew they were going the right way when she started to see statues of giant cats posed next to the walkway. Families were taking pictures next to metal statues of jaguars and tigers and while Skye thought they were pretty neat, she really wanted to see the real thing.

Even though she wasn't supposed to, she let go of her sister's hand and darted ahead of Nattie and Sharon when she spotted the first enclosure. She heard her sister shout after her but she didn't stop until her fingers curled around the railing overlooking a big enclosure full of rocks and trees and big pond.

Skye stood on her tiptoes to read the information card about the animal in it but she was too excited to focus on the words. Instead, she eagerly searched the enclosure until she saw a giant, tan cat lounging lazily on some rocks. The huge feline looked very comfortable even though Skye thought that she probably wouldn't have chosen rocks to lay on when there was some very soft looking grass two feet away from the giant cat.

She sucked in a breath and turned around to excitedly show Natasha and Sharon the cat, "Look! Isn't it pretty?"

As if the cat heard her compliment, it lifted its big head and yawned lazily, showing off all of its big pointy teeth, before setting its head back down on its paws and closing its eyes. Skye made a happy sound and fell even more in love with the kitty.

Her sister and Sharon stepped up beside her and Natasha gave her a look, "Skye, I told you to stay with us."

"I'm sorry Nattie, but _look_ ," She hoped her apology sounded sincere but she was too enamored with the big cat in front of her to put forth too much effort.

Sharon let out a low, appreciative whistle, "Woah, that thing's huge."

Natasha nodded in agreement and Skye watched the cat's tail move slowly back in forth as it napped.

A woman with dark skin and a kind smile stepped up beside them and gave them a happy wave, "That's Millie. She's a mountain lion."

Skye tried to squish closer to the fence but smiled up at the lady, "She's _awesome_!"

The woman chuckled, "I'm sure she'd appreciate the compliment. What's your name?"

"I'm Skye," she pointed to herself and then her sister, "That's my big sister Nattie and her girlfriend Shary."

The woman smiled at all of them and waved again, "I'm Amber and I'm a zookeeper here. Do you have any questions?"

Amber had barely finished her question before Skye launched into a bunch of her own, "How old is Millie? How long has she been here? Does she like it here? Does she have friends? What does she _eat_?"

Amber glanced at Natasha and her sister gave the zookeeper a shrug.

"Well, Millie's about four years old and she's been here for a couple of months. A hunter accidentally shot her and she's been healing and resting up. She's actually going to be released in a couple of weeks."

Skye gave Millie a concerned look, "Is she alright?" The cat had rolled onto her side, somehow managing not to roll right off of the rock, and her tongue was poking out between her sharp teeth as she continued her nap.

"She's fine. Her recovery has been a long one but she's healed up nicely. She's actually been treating this as a little vacation. As you can see, she seems to be enjoying herself." Amber motioned towards where Millie was sleeping and Skye giggled.

"Is it nap time?" She asked.

Amber chuckled, "It's always nap time for Millie."

Sharon snorted and Natasha mumbled, "Millie's living the good life."

Skye continued to ask Amber question after question about Millie and while Natasha and Sharon lost interest halfway through the conversation and stepped to the side to come up with imaginary backstories about Millie's life, Amber seemed elated that Skye was so interested in Millie. Amber patiently answered all of her questions and then offered to show her the next enclosure. Skye eagerly accepted and dragged Natasha and Sharon away after saying a long goodbye to Millie.

They listened as Amber talked about Callie and Kevin, two bobcats who had been hit by a car two weeks before, and another bobcat named Eloise who had been taken away from someone who had found her as a baby, took her away from her mother, and tried to keep her as a pet.

"Eloise can't survive on her own in the wild so this is her new home now." Amber said, motioning towards where Eloise was running around chasing a thick rubber ball in the enclosure. The bobcat seemed to be having the time of her life and Skye laughed as Eloise stumbled and caught her footing before batting the giant ball away from her with her paw.

Amber's phone rang and she had to excuse herself but not before saying a warm goodbye. Skye waved and watched her walk away for a second before turning back to admire Eloise.

She tilted her head and asked, "Do you think Eloise knows that someone took her away from her family as a baby? Do you think she knows she can never go back into the wild?"

Skye thought that it was sad that a human had wanted a pet so badly that they had taken Eloise away from her home and now she had to live at the zoo, no matter how nice the zoo was. She hoped that Eloise wasn't sad that she would always be here, rather than running around outdoors, free.

Natasha stepped up beside her and studied the energetic bobcat running around in front of them, "I don't think so. This is all she's ever known, so she doesn't know what she's missing. Besides, she looks pretty happy to me."

Sharon nodded in agreement and Skye had to admit that her sister was right. Even though Skye was _sure_ Eloise probably would have been happier running around in her natural environment, she still looked pretty cheerful.

She pressed her hand up against the thick glass wall separating them from Eloise and squished her face up against the glass in an attempt to get closer.

She watched Eloise play for a few more minutes until Natasha playfully tugged on her ponytail, "Wanna go check out the rest of the zoo?"

Skye said goodbye to Eloise, grabbed onto her sister's hand, and let herself be led towards the next enclosure.

* * *

"Skye?"

"Yeah?"

" _This_ scares you?"

Skye peeked out from behind Natasha's legs and glared at Sharon.

Sharon gave her a disbelieving look, "You wanted to pet the snakes and cuddle the spiders…. But you're afraid of the _birds_?"

Skye stuck her tongue out at Shary and tightened her grip on her sister's shirt. Natasha put a comforting hand on her head and said, "I'm sure there's a reason, right Skye?"

Feeling brave for a second, she peeked her head around her sister and looked at the large cage in front of her. A giant bird was perched on a branch, glaring at her. She quickly ducked back behind her sister.

"I don't like 'em," She mumbled.

Nattie ran her hand through her ponytail and gave her a side-hug, "Why not маленькая звезда?"

She dared to peek around her sister again and scrunched her nose up at the bird. It hadn't moved at all and was still giving her a dirty look, "I don't trust them."

Natasha stared at her while Sharon burst out laughing.

Skye stomped her foot indignantly, "You're being mean Sharon!"

The blonde tried to stop laughing, failed, covered her mouth with her hand, and finally regained her composure, "I'm sorry Cupcake, I didn't mean to laugh at you. You were just so… serious, I guess." She shared a look with Natasha and Skye saw her lips twitch up again.

She crossed her arms over her chest and indignantly said, "I don't trust them 'cause if they wanted to, they could fly right into you and scratch you with their big nails."

Nattie raised an eyebrow, "Talons?"

Skye shrugged and waved her off, "The birdies at my school aren't scared of nothing! Fitz almost stepped on one by accident 'cause it wouldn't move outta the way!"

She gave the bird a dirty look and was very glad that there was a fence between them. The bird looked away, like Skye wasn't worth its time anymore, and she couldn't figure out if that was better or worse.

"Birds aren't too bad Skye. They get to fly, isn't that cool?" Natasha tried to placate her and take her attention away from the bird and Sharon, who was still trying not to smile.

Skye huffed, "Airplanes fly too Nattie. It's not _that_ cool." She would never admit it because she didn't want the birds to get big heads, but she actually thought flying was pretty neat and was a little jealous that birds could do it whenever they wanted.

Her sister shrugged, crouched down so that Skye could hop on her back for a piggyback ride, and said, "C'mon, let's go grab some food."

She climbed onto Nattie and wrapped her arms around her sister's neck. Natasha and Sharon started walking away from the birds and Skye threw one last dirty look their way before her sister turned a corner and they were out of sight.

* * *

"Who'd like to come up here and be my special helper?"

Skye quickly raised her hand and wiggled it around, hoping to get the attention of the zookeeper, Ricky, in front of them. She was crowded around a platform with a bunch of other kids, watching the zookeeper interact with the friendly otters.

Ricky looked around and his eyes settled on her. He pointed at her and motioned for her to come towards him, "You! Wanna come help me up here?"

Her eyes widened in surprise and she felt Natasha nudge her towards the stage while the rest of the kids groaned in disappointment. She quickly navigated her way around everyone and hopped onto the little platform where the zookeeper was waiting for her. Ricky was wearing the same uniform that Amber had been wearing, right down to the friendly smile he gave her as he shook her hand, "What's your name?"

"I'm Skye," She said, not looking at the group of people staring at her and only focusing on Ricky and the two otters swimming two feet away from her in their pond.

"It's nice to meet you. Do you think you could give me a hand?"

She nodded eagerly and grinned when one of the otters spun in some circles in the water. They were so cute and they reminded her of one of her teddy bears at home.

Ricky gave her an easy smile, "Great! These two little rascals behind me are Thelma and Louise. They're North American River Otters and were found a few weeks ago with wire wrapped around their necks and legs. A hiker managed to save them before they drowned and we've been keeping an eye on them," Ricky paused while the audience murmured in sympathy before continuing, "River otters are very playful. Can anyone guess what one of their favorite games are?"

Everyone shouted answers out and Ricky waited until he heard the right one, "I heard someone say tag! River Otters love to chase and wrestle and they're one of the more playful and social types of otters."

Thelma and Louise splashed happily behind her and Skye half-listened to Ricky while she watched them play. They were sleek and had cute black noses and expressive eyes. RIght now, they were swimming in circles around each other and Skye thought she spotted thin red lines around their necks and legs where they had gotten caught up in the wire.

Ricky spoke a little louder and got her attention, "They're especially playful right now because they know it's time to eat! Skye? Would you mind helping me feed them?"

Skye straightened up and nodded excitedly.

Ricky gathered up two small buckets and showed them her contents. She wrinkled her nose up in disgust at the nasty smell coming from them and Ricky laughed, "Otters' diet mainly consists of fish, amphibians, freshwater clams, mussels, snails, and crayfish. Here, we give them a mixture of most of those things. Would you mind setting these over there?" He motioned towards the rocks and grass on the side of the pond.

Ricky handed her the buckets and Skye carefully grabbed them and set them down as close to the otters as she could. They were both focused on her, they must have know that she was feeding them, and were slowly approaching. She backed up so that they wouldn't be nervous and once she was far enough away for them to be comfortable, they quickly made their way to the buckets and started digging in. Everyone watched them eat in silence.

Thelma reached into Louise's bucket and snagged some of her fish and Skye giggled at the little thief.

The otters wolfed down their food in a couple of minutes and Skye was surprised at how fast they ate. She hoped they didn't get a tummy ache.

Thelma and Louise were cleaning their faces when Ricky stepped up next to her and showed her another small bucket, "Want to throw them some fish? They like diving for them."

Skye looked at the slimey, dead fish that Ricky was offering her and considered it. She decided that touching the dead fish would be worth it to be able to feed Thelma and Louise, so she reached into the bucket and actively ignored the way the fish squished in her hand.

"Here, I'll show you," Ricky grabbed a fish from the bucket, Skye noted how he didn't seem grossed out at all and wondered how often he touched dead fish, and then he tossed it into the pond.

Thelma and Louise immediately abandoned cleaning their faces and rushed into the water. Both otters glided through the water and when Louise reached the fish first, Thelma tried to wrestle it out of her grasp. Louise shoved the fish in her mouth before Thelma could take it from her.

Ricky motioned for her to throw her fish into the water so she did, a couple feet away from where Thelma and Louise were already floating, and she laughed when they darted towards the fish and fought over it again.

It didn't take long for the otters to realize that she and Ricky were the ones throwing the fish, so they started hovering closer and closer to them and the fish bucket until they were by her feet, looking up at her with their adorable eyes.

She grabbed the last two fish from the bucket and set them on the ground. "You guys don't have to fight over these, there's one for each of you," She whispered to the otters. First, Thelma came up and grabbed her fish and then Louise did. They both ate quickly before slipping back into the water to float on their backs.

Ricky set the buckets aside and spoke to the audience, "Otters are chiefly nocturnal and since Thelma and Louise have already eaten, they'll probably go to sleep for a few hours."

Everyone groaned and Ricky laughed, "Let's give Skye a hand for being such a good helper."

* * *

"Time to go home маленькая звезда."

Her sister's voice shocked her and she jerked upright.

They were admiring the fish, or, Skye had been admiring the fish. In order to see into the fishtank, you had to walk into a dark, cave-like viewing room. The light filtering through the water gave the room a blue glow and it was quiet and cool. Skye hadn't even realized she had been slumped up against the glass of the tank, sleeping.

"I don't wanna go home," She whined.

Her sister gave her a look, "We've been here for hours Skye. You're falling asleep."

"'M not even tired," She pouted. The fact that she was having trouble keeping her eyes open wasn't helping her case.

Sharon knelt down and picked up her otter stuffed animal that her sister had gotten for her at the gift shop. She must have dropped it when she fell asleep. Sharon offered her the stuffed otter and Skye gratefully took it and cuddled it to her chest.

"Well, _I'm_ getting tired," Her sister said and Sharon nodded. "Let's go home. We can come back with mom and dad another weekend."

Skye wasn't happy about leaving the zoo, they hadn't made it to all of the exhibits yet, but when her sister lifted her up and held her close, she didn't protest. She set her head on Nattie's shoulder and tucked her stuffed otter in between their chests so that she didn't accidently drop it again.

"Did you have fun Skye?" Sharon asked.

Skye nodded slowly shut her eyes, "I love the zoo."

* * *

Please let me know what you thought! I'm not really a huge fan of zoo's unless their for rehabilitation and conservation but this was really fun to write and I hope you like it! Thank you so much for reading! x


	77. Skye Meets May's Father

**You guys... this chapter took _forever_ to write! It's so long! It's based off of a prompt sent in by Tome1: "** **I would love to see a chapter where Skye gets to meet May's father since she got to meet May's mom." I hope you like it! xx**

* * *

Skye woke up to voices floating through her open door from downstairs. She rolled over and snuggled deeper into her blankets, idly wondering why her family was being so loud when they knew it was bedtime, and was determined to go right back to sleep when she heard an unfamiliar voice.

She debated whether or not to ignore the new voice, she _was_ pretty sleepy, but curiosity got the better of her. Kicking her blankets off of her, she glanced at her clock to see she had only been asleep for an hour and it was only 9:30. Making sure she had a tight grip on Alice, she made her way into the hallway and winced at the bright light.

Once her eyes adjusted, she silently crept towards the staircase and went halfway down before peering over the railing and into the living room where all the commotion seemed to be coming from.

Skye sat down on one of the steps and sleepily rested her head against the railing before observing what was going on in front of her.

Nattie and Trip were talking excitedly over one another, trying to get the attention of an old man who was holding a medium-sized duffle bag. The man was short and had kind eyes and an even kinder smile that was aimed right towards her siblings. Skye noticed that her mom and dad were smiling fondly at her brother and sister and the man and that her mom's eyes were twinkling.

She probably shouldn't have been surprised that the man was her grandfather, but when Trip called him that in an effort to pull his attention away from Natasha for a moment, she jerked in surprise.

She was so caught off guard that she didn't notice she had been spotted until her mom was making her way towards her and putting a hand on her hip, "What're you doing up baby?"

Everyone quieted down and Skye saw her grandfather's attention shift to her. Skye quickly looked away and pulled Alice to her chest, "Loud."

Her mom reached for her and Skye eagerly stepped into her mom's arms and cuddled close. Her mom patted her back and Skye whispered, "Who's that?"

"That's my Ba Ba and your grandfather. Why don't you say hi?" Her mom shifted her so that she was on her hip and couldn't hide her face anymore. Skye gripped Alice tightly in one hand and waved with the other.

She _loved_ her Grandma even though she had only been able to see her a handful of times. She had _never_ seen her grandfather before because he lived all the way across the country and had health issues. Skye was surprised to see him here and wondered why he had arrived so late at night, but she really wanted him to like her and she really, really wanted to like him.

He stepped up to her and gave her a kind smile. Skye idly wondered if he did everything kindly and she hoped that he did.

"It's an honor to meet you, little one," He bowed slightly and his eyes were twinkling and Skye knew immediately that she was going to absolutely love her grandfather.

She giggled and he continued, "Melly's told me so much about you I feel like I already know you. Is this Alice?" He gestured towards her doll and Skye's eyes widened in surprise before she nodded eagerly, "Yeah," She pretended the doll was talking to her and seriously said, "She told me to tell you that she likes you."

Her grandfather's smile widened and spoke to the doll, "Well Alice, I like you too."

Her mom patted her back and set her on the ground while Trip collapsed onto the couch and got her attention, "Isn't it cool that Gramps surprised us? He's staying for the whole weekend!"

Skye nodded happily and scurried around her parents so that she could jump onto the couch next to her brother, "Super cool!"

Her dad grabbed her and hauled her into his arms before she could get comfortable and she made a distraught sound. Her dad chuckled and tightened his grip on her when she tried to wiggle away from him, "It's way past your bedtime Skye. Back to bed."

She let out a long, drawn out groan and tried to lean away from her dad so that she could fall onto the couch. It didn't work. "But…"

Her mom didn't even let her finish the rest of her sentence, "No but's baby. It's bedtime, let's go."

Her mom motioned for her dad to follow her back upstairs but her grandfather stopped them, "Can't she visit for a little while?"

Her mom shook her head, "She can visit with you in the morning Ba Ba. She gets cranky when she doesn't get enough sleep."

Skye couldn't even argue with her mom about that. She _could_ get cranky but even though that was true, she still wanted to stay down here with everyone else and talk with her grandfather.

She opened her mouth to beg her parents to let her stay up but before she could say a word, she let out a huge yawn. Her dad gave her a knowing look and Skye slumped against him in defeat.

She heard her grandfather chuckle and say, "Could I put her to bed?"

Her mom must have nodded because before she knew it, she was being placed into a new set of arms and carried up the stairs.

Her grandfather smelled like mint and tea and Skye wrapped her arms around his neck and cuddled closer. It should feel weird, hugging and being carried by a person she just met, but she felt safe and content so she didn't question it.

He hummed a tune and Skye let it wash over her until her grandfather gently deposited her onto her bed. He tucked her in and squeezed her hand, "I look forward to getting to know you tomorrow. Have sweet dreams little one."

Skye tucked Alice into her chest and tried to keep her eyes open, "G'night Grampy."

She thought she heard him laugh quietly but she was falling asleep too fast to know for sure

* * *

Skye woke up thinking that last night had been a strange, oddly specific dream, but when she wandered downstairs, she was pleasantly surprised to find her Grampy sitting at the dining room table, sipping from a teacup and reading the newspaper.

Rather than run into the kitchen to help her dad with breakfast like she normally would have, she quickly made her way over to Grampy instead. She climbed onto the chair next to him and enthusiastically said, "G'morning!"

He set the newspaper down and gave her his full attention, "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

Skye thought it over and nodded, "No nightmares." She tilted her head and pointed to the newspaper, "Can I have the funnies?"

Her Grampy raised an eyebrow before shuffling through the newspaper pages and Skye couldn't help but burst out laughing. Grampy grinned and gave her a questioning look, "What's so funny?"

Skye pointed to his eyebrow, "Mommy does the exact same thing!"

Grampy gave her a conspiratorial look, "Who do you think she got it from, little one?" He then went on to raise his eyebrows up and down and Skye bursted out laughing again. She tried to mimic him but she couldn't get her eyebrows to do exactly what she said.

"Could you teach me?" Skye wondered as she used one of her fingers to push her left eyebrow up. Her right one could sort of move up but her left one was being stubborn and refused to listen.

Grampy nodded and pushed the funny section of the newspaper in front of her, "I can definitely try but there's something else I'd like to teach you."

Skye tilted her head and said, "What?"

Grampy reached under the table and pulled out a prettily wrapped box, "I thought that we could do something fun today. It's up to you, of course, but I think everyone will enjoy it. I know your mom does."

Skye was intrigued and eagerly reached for the present her Grampy was holding out to her. She admired the light purple wrapping paper for a second before tearing it up and pulling the top off of the box.

She was a little confused by her gift but that didn't stop her from admiring the lovely white ice skates sitting in light purple tissue paper. She lifted one up to inspect and gave her Grampy a questioning look. She didn't know how to ice skate, actually, she'd never really been too interested in the sport and knew next to nothing about it, so she was wondering why her Grampy had gotten her ice skates.

"Your mother started ice skating when she was seven. She wanted to be just like Dorothy Hamill and she competed and won a lot of competitions." Grampy scooted closer to her and motioned for her to put the skate on to see if it fit. She let him untie the laces and slip it onto her foot.

"Really? Mommy ice skated?" Skye asked, imagining her mom gliding over ice. In her mind, she could easily see her mom gracefully spinning and jumping.

Grampy laughed and looked like he was recalling a happy memory, "Yes, for a while actually. Well, until one day she marched up to me and said 'Ba Ba, the ice is too hard when I fall on it. I want to do martial arts instead.'"

He chuckled again and Skye scrunched up her nose. Both sports seemed tough to her. "Why?"

"Because at least when she fell doing martial arts, the mats softened the blow. Anyways, she still enjoys the sport and I do as well. I thought we could teach you how to skate. Would you like that?"

Grampy tied the laces on her skate and stepped back to admire the shiny white ice skate on her foot. Skye thought they looked pretty and she wiggled her toes and excitedly kicked her legs back and forth, "Yes!"

* * *

Skye plopped down next to Grampy, crossed her arms over her chest, and sighed. Ice skating was hard and her knees and butt were starting to hurt from where she kept landing on them. Her siblings were easily gliding over the ice, Natasha was even doing some fancy spins, and Skye gave them a dirty look.

Grampy chuckled and fondly stated, "You remind me of your mother."

Skye's frustration ebbed away. She loved being told she was like her mom, it was a huge compliment. "Really?" She asked and let her arms drop to her sides.

Grampy nodded, "Yes, her first ice skating lesson went about the same way yours is. She kept falling and falling and she ended up exactly like you are, sitting right next to me with bruises on her legs and very, very upset."

Skye poked one of the bruises forming on her shin and focused back on her grandfather.

He grabbed her hand, probably to get her to stop touching her tender bruise, and held it tightly. It was nice, his hands were warm and dry and they were slowly warming Skye's frozen hand.

"Do you want to know what I told her?" He asked.

Skye nodded eagerly and leaned towards him .

"I said, 'Melly, there are going to be a lot of times in your life when you fall down, and a lot of people are going to want you to stay down. The important thing is that you keep getting back up. Are you going to be the type of person who stays down or the type of person who dusts herself off, gets back up, and proves everybody wrong?'"

Skye pondered her grandfather's words and gave him her full attention when he squeezed her hand and said, "Well Skye? What type of person are you going to be?"

His eyes were sparkling and he was smiling like he already knew what her answer was going to be.

She tilted her head and considered it. She knew what kind of her person her mom was and she also knew she wanted to be just like her mom, so she gingerly stood up and gripped the side of the bench for dear life so she didn't fall down. She wobbled a little and Grampy tightened his hold on her hand and his smile grew a little wider, "That's what I thought."

She gave him a grin, squared her shoulders, and made her way back to the ice rink to where her parents were waving at her to come join them. She wobbled the whole way but never fell and she took that as a massive accomplishment.

Her mom and dad grabbed onto her hands and Skye let out a sigh of relief because she knew they wouldn't let her fall. They slowly made their way around the rink once before her mom gave her a curious look, "Want to try on your own?"

Skye glanced at the hard ice underneath her and gave it a dirty look. The ice _hurt_ when she fell on it, which was often, and the tips of her nose and fingers were starting to go numb from the cold, but she was determined to get the hang of this so she straightened up and tried to look brave when she nodded at her mom.

"Here, it'll be like when you learned how to ride a bike. I'll stay with you until you feel like you're ready to go on your own," Her mom gently guided her towards the edge of the rink so that she could grab onto the wall if she needed to and she heard her dad wish her good luck.

It was easy at first, especially with her mom taking on most of her weight so she didn't have to balance all on her own, but her mom gradually started to let go and Skye started wobbling. At one point, her legs wouldn't do what she told them to and they started to slip from underneath her. She panicked and lurched forward but her mom caught her before she could fall.

Skye grabbed onto her mom's arms and let out a sound of frustration, "This is hard!"

Her mom gave her a sympathetic look, "It's your first time ice skating baby, you don't have to do it all on your own. We can just skate together this time and come back and try again next weekend."

Skye seriously considered it because she was kind of sick of falling down and because it was so much easier when her parents were right next to her, waiting to catch her if she fell, but then she looked over to where Grampy was watching her and she faltered. He gave her a happy wave and a smile and Skye realized that if she learned how to skate on her own next weekend, Grampy wouldn't be there to see it.

"No, I'm gonna do it today. Watch me Mommy," She pushed away from her mom, almost toppling over for a second before regaining her balance, and slowly moved her legs on her own. She started off walking more than skating but she didn't mind because she didn't fall. After a few moments of her weird combination of walking and skating, she pushed off of one foot and glided forward on the other. She yelped in surprise, she couldn't believe she had _actually_ skated, and almost forgot to put her other foot down so that she didn't fall.

Smiling widely, she caught her balance and tried to do it again. This time, when she glided forward, she remembered to continue on with her other foot and before she knew it, she had awkwardly skated four paces forward. When she felt her balance start to falter, she stopped and regained it before turning to where Grampy was sitting. She waved her arms around, "I did it! I did it and I didn't fall!"

She could hear her parents cheering her on and saw Grampy stand up, give her an enthusiastic thumbs up, and then he shouted so that she could hear, "I knew you could do it little one, good job!"

Skye laughed happily and in her excitement, she went to jump up and down like she normally did when she was happy about something, but forgot she was on ice. Her feet slid around haphazardly and she was sure she looked like a silly cartoon character before her feet slipped from underneath her and she landed on her butt.

She sat there, dazed for a second, before she heard someone laugh and Nattie was gliding up to her. Her sister was still chuckling when she stopped in front of her, "You okay?"

Natasha hauled her to her feet and Skye wobbled for a second before her sister placed a steadying hand on her back. "I'm okay. Did you see me? I skated all by myself!"

She refused to let her fall diminish the fact that she had actually skated on ice all by herself. Her sister guided her towards the rest of her family, "We all saw, it was _awesome_."

Nattie led her to where Grampy was and where the rest of her family was gathering and she gave them all a bright smile while they cheered her on. Her sister lifted her off the ice and Skye took stilted steps on the carpet until she could launch herself into Grampy's arms. He squeezed her tightly and she looked up at him and smiled, "I did it by myself! Did you see?"

"I saw little one, you did so well," Grampy hugged her and Skye smiled widely at the compliment. She felt warm and happy and her Grampy's approval made her feel invincible. She even managed to forget how much her legs were aching for a few moments.

Grampy gave her a proud look and Skye smiled brightly at him before her dad swept her up in his arms and pressed a kiss to her cheek, "I think this deserves a celebration. Skye? Want to get some ice cream on the way home?"

Clapping her hands together excitedly, Skye nodded and yelled, "Yes!"

* * *

Skye woke up to a gentle hand brushing her hair away from her face.

Her eyes shot open and she was surprised to find they were full of tears and that she was shaking and her heart was beating quickly.

"You were having a nightmare little one."

Rubbing a hand over her eyes, Skye squinted up to see Grampy leaning over her with a concerned look on his face. She couldn't remember what her nightmare had been about, she just remembered being terrified.

She sniffled and threw her arms around Grampy, desperate for comfort. He pulled her close and ran a hand through her hair, careful not to tug on the tangles, and the action was so similar to what her mom did when she was upset that Skye's tears disappeared and she felt her heartbeat slow back down to normal.

"Are you alright?" Grampy ran his hand over her head one more time before leaning back so he could examine her.

She nodded uncertainly and Grampy tapped underneath her chin to get her attention, "Want to talk about it?"

Shaking her head, she leaned in to give Grampy another hug, "I don't 'member what I was dreaming about."

"Everything's alright little one," Grampy murmured before squeezing her tightly and gently pushing her back so that she was lying down once again. He leaned down to pick Alice up from the floor and handed her the doll.

Skye cuddled Alice close and let Grampy tuck her back in. Once he was done, he put one hand on the top of her head and stared at it intensely. Skye had no idea what he was doing so she gave him a funny look and tried to roll her eyes up so that she could see his hand, "What're you doing?"

Grampy continued to stare at his hand resting on her head, "I'm giving you good thoughts so you have nice dreams."

Skye scrunched her nose up and she saw Grampy's lips twitch into a small smile before he said, "Do you feel them?"

She didn't really feel anything but she trusted her Grampy and knew he wouldn't lie to her so she said, "I feel them."

His smile grew wider, "Good. Now you'll have nice dreams, no more nightmares."

Skye felt much better than she had when she had first woken up and she hoped that Grampy's good thoughts would work because she didn't want to have another nightmare.

Grampy moved his hand and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "Good night."

Before he could stand up, Skye reached out and grabbed his hand, "Will you stay 'til I fall asleep?"

Grampy looked surprised for a moment before nodding and sitting back down. Skye gave him a small smile and he reached forward and tapped her nose, "Shut your eyes and go to sleep little one, I'll be right here."

* * *

"Grampy, watch! This is a funny part!" Skye tried to pull Grampy's attention away from Trip, who was telling a story about school.

At breakfast, she had found out that Grampy had never seen Tangled. Her mom had given Grampy a sympathetic look and had said, "Oh Ba Ba, you're in for it now."

As soon as they had finished eating, she had pulled Grampy into the living room and played the DVD, pointing out all the best parts and eagerly watching all of his reactions to the movie. He seemed to be enjoying it and Skye made sure he was focusing on all the best parts.

Once the movie was over, her dad peered into the room and gave her a funny look, "Skye you should show Grampy your Rapunzel dress."

Grampy shrugged at her dad and gave her a smile, "I'd love to see your dress."

Skye happily stood up and started running to her room, "Grampy! We can have a tea party!"

She heard her dad chuckle and looked back to make sure Grampy was following after her.

He was.

* * *

"Grampy?"

"Yes?"

"Nothing's happening."

"You just need to be patient little one. Something will happen."

Skye sighed and leaned back on the dock next to Grampy. They were both holding onto fishing poles, sitting on the edge of a dock hanging over a tiny pond. She had been the only one Grampy could convince to go fishing with him and after forty-five minutes of nothing happening, she could kind of understand why her siblings hadn't been eager to join them. Even though it was kind of boring, she was still enjoying her alone time with Grampy.

"I managed to get your father to come fishing with me once," Grampy casually said.

Skye glanced over to him, happy to have a distraction, "Really?"

Grampy nodded, "Only once. He got a bite and panicked, lost his footing, and fell into the water."

Skye let the information wash over her for a moment before she burst out laughing. She could easily imagine the scenario and wished she had been around to see it.

She clutched her side and tried to control her giggles, "Daddy's silly."

Her laughter came to a halt when she felt a tug on her line. She screamed and held her fishing pole out in front of her, "What do I do!?"

Grampy chuckled and said, "Reel it in."

Skye did as she was told and when she had reeled in her line enough, she saw the little fish struggling to get away near the top of the water and promptly burst into tears. She held the pole with one hand and pointed to the poor little fish with the other, "I'm hurting it! It's hurt! Grampy, I wanna let it go!"

Grampy took her pole from her and reeled the fish the rest of the way in and it flopped around pitifully on the wooden dock next to her feet. He crouched down and gently grabbed the fish while Skye kneeled down next to him and whispered to the little fishy, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."

Expertly, Grampy unhooked the fish and carefully lowered it back into the water, where it quickly swam away, before turning to her, "It's okay little one, see? It's not hurt."

Skye shook her head and rubbed her eyes, "No, I saw! I hurted its mouth!"

Grampy pulled her into a hug and patted her back, "The fish's fine, it swam away back to its friends."

Skye hugged him tightly, pressed her face against his chest, and said, "I don't wanna fish anymore Grampy, can we go home?"

"Of course. I didn't mean to make you sad little one."

Nodding, she tried to stop her tears and waited until after Grampy grabbed their poles and gear with one hand to grab onto his other hand.

* * *

"Mommy!" Skye burst through their front door and ran to where her mom was sitting in the living room with a surprised look on her face. She leapt onto her mom's lap and buried her face in her neck, "I caught a fish and the hook hurted its mouth and I feel bad."

She felt her mom rub comforting circles onto her back, "Oh no baby, I'm sure the fish is alright."

Skye didn't say anything, just cuddled closer and let her mom comfort her.

"I'm sorry Melly, I didn't know she would react like this," Grampy said.

"No Ba Ba, it's not your fault. I should've realized she would've reacted this way, she doesn't like seeing anyone or anything hurt." Her mom said as she pried her away from her neck and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "I'm sure the fish is okay Skye, it swam away, didn't it?"

Skye nodded.

"See?" Her mom pressed another kiss to her forehead and patted her back, "If it wasn't okay, it wouldn't have been able to swim."

She pondered that and realized that her mom was probably right. She still felt bad for hurting the poor fish. It had just been swimming around, living its little life, and Skye had gone and hurt it for no reason.

"I guess so, I just feel bad Mommy." She rested her head on her mom's shoulder and looked over to Grampy, who was watching them with a concerned look on his face.

Her mom leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Why don't you go give Grampy a hug? I think he's sad that you're sad."

Not liking the fact that Grampy was sad, she hopped off of her mom's lap and ran over to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a tight hug. He pulled her close and said, "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay Grampy."

Grampy sat down on the chair and pulled Skye onto his lap, "Good."

Her mom called over to them, "Why don't we head to the playground before it starts to get dark out. How's that sound Skye?"

She nodded excitedly and tugged on Grampy's hand, "Will you push me on the swings?"

"Only if you push me too," Grampy grinned and Skye laughed before jumping down and pulling on his hand, "Let's go!"

* * *

"Grampy, don't go! Please stay!" Skye took Grampy's duffel bag out of his hand and set it on the ground behind her.

"I need to go little one, I don't want to but I have to." Grampy looked sad and his kind eyes weren't as sparkly as they usually were. Her siblings had already said goodbye and had headed off to school but Skye was refusing to move.

Skye stomped her foot and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She didn't want him to go.

Her mom sighed and kneeled down in front of her, "We need to go baby. Ba Ba needs to get to the airport and you need to go to school."

She stubbornly shook her head, "He can't go Mommy."

Her mom tilted her head and Skye could swear she could see amusement in her mom's eyes, "Why not?"

Skye stared at her feet, shrugged, and muttered, "'Cause we won't see him again for a long, long time. He should just stay with us."

Her mom made a soft sound and Grampy stepped in front of her and tapped underneath her chin so that she had to look up at him, "I'm sorry we can't see each other as much as we'd like to little one, but I'll try to visit more often."

Skye nodded glumly and Grampy studied her, "How about I fly you and your siblings out to visit me for a week this summer. How's that sound?"

She uncrossed her arms and her eyes widened in surprise, "Really? For a whole week?"

"Sure, or longer. It's up to you guys, but I promise we'll see each other soon, okay?" Grampy said earnestly.

Skye held out her pinky, "Pinky promise?"

Grampy grinned and intertwined their pinkies, "Pinky promise."

Skye squeezed their pinkies together before reluctantly letting go and reaching behind her to hand Grampy his duffel bag, "Okay, I guess you can go. But I don't like it." She made sure to let her thoughts be known and Grampy chuckled, "Me neither."

She rushed forward and gave him a hug, "Bye Grampy, I love you."

"I love you too little one." Grampy's voice wobbled a bit and Skye squeezed him tighter.

She reluctantly let go and Grampy gave her one last smile before taking a deep breath picking up his duffel bag. Her mom led him outside and Skye stayed with her dad and watched from the doorway as Grampy got into the passenger seat of her mom's car. She waved at him and he waved back until the car disappeared down the street.

Skye sniffled and looked up at her dad, who was standing next to her with her backpack in hand, "I miss him."

He picked her up and pulled her close before shutting the door, locking it, and heading to the car, "I know sweetheart. You'll see him again soon."

Skye rested her head on his shoulder and hoped he was right.

* * *

Please let me know what you thought! This chapter took forever to write!

Thank you so much for reading! I really, really appreciate it :) xx


	78. Skye Feels Sad

**Hey guys! Sorry for the weird update schedule. I've been going through a pretty tough time and either couldn't find the time or motivation to write, so thanks for sticking with me. You guys are the best :) Thanks for reading and I promise, if you leave a prompt, I'll write it out eventually! I'm haven't forgot about any of your guys' awesome prompts, I promise!**

* * *

"Mommy?"

"Yeah?"

"I feel sad."

Her mom stopped typing on her laptop and gave Skye her full attention, "Why're you sad baby?"

Skye bit the inside of her lip and shrugged, "I don't know, I just am."

She had woken up and hadn't felt like her usually, cheerful self. Making breakfast with her dad hadn't made her feel as happy as it usually did, the playful banter with her siblings during breakfast didn't have her laughing hysterically like it normally did, even playing with her dolls didn't bring her the same joy today as it did every day. She felt sad today and she didn't know why. She had thought back to see if anything upsetting had happened in the last few days and hadn't been able to think of anything so she had just resigned herself to the fact that today was just a sad day.

"Did you get in a fight with someone or watch one of Natasha's sad movies?" Her mom asked while reaching forward to fondly tug on the end of one of Skye's pigtail.

Skye shook her head, "No, I'm just sad." She brushed her mom's hands out of the way and climbed onto her lap. She wrapped her arms around her mom's neck and rested her head against her chest.

Her mom hugged her close and rubbed gentle circles on her back, "I'm sorry you're sad baby. Can you think of anything that'll make you feel happy again?"

Skye thought about it before reluctantly shaking her head. She couldn't think of anything that would make her feel happy, not even a tea party or going to the park. She didn't even really feel like doing anything.

It was silent for a few long moments but Skye felt comfortable cuddled close to her mom. After a bit, Skye lifted her head and reached out to twirl her mom's silky hair around her finger, "Can we just hang out?"

Her mom smiled at her and leaned down to press a quick kiss to her forehead, "Of course we can. Let me know if you think of something that'll make you happy, okay?"

Skye nodded and let her mom get resituated so that she could reach her laptop and continue typing away. She leaned back against her mom's chest and watched her tap away on her keyboard.

Normally, Skye probably would've gotten bored watching her mom do work for so long, but the rhythmic clacking of the keyboard and the light from the laptop was comforting, and it was interesting to listen to her mom mutter to herself as she filled out her forms. Occasionally, her mom would press a kiss to the top of her head or pause to wrap her arms around Skye's middle and give her a big hug and Skye felt nice and warm and loved.

Skye was nodding off a little when her mom softly patted her thigh, "All done here baby, want to move to the living room?"

Skye shrugged and managed a small grin when her mom tickled her sides before lifting her up and moving into the living room. They collapsed onto the couch and her mom picked up the remote, "Any requests?"

She shrugged again, snuggled into her mom's side, and pulled a blanket off the back of the couch and over her legs. Her mom found an episode of Cupcake Wars and Skye grinned again, knowing that her mom was only watching it because she wanted to make her happy because her mom didn't really like baking or cooking shows.

They watched the show and once that was over, they watched another one. Skye still felt sad and a little down but her mom kept making silly comments about the judges or the contestants and kept commenting on the "amateur mistakes" that they kept making.

One by one, the rest of her family members trickled in. Trip and Nattie were sprawled out on the floor, bickering over who was going to win the baking competition and taunting each other. Her dad was sitting on the other side of her, trying to figure out how to braid her hair, much to Skye's amusement. She hadn't had to tell the rest her family that she was in an odd mood, they seemed to have sensed it. They'd all turn to her and make funny comments on the show, or Nattie and Trip would tell her a silly story about their friends when they were reminded of a specific memory, or her dad would purposefully mess up his braid and get her attention to ask for help when she got too quiet. Her family normally acted like this and all of these things weren't unusual, but the way they showed her how much they cared made her feel more loved than ever.

After four consecutive episodes of Cupcake Wars, Trip groaned and disappeared upstairs after telling them he'd be right back. He ran back down the stairs a few moments later, almost stumbling and falling on his face, with a board game in hand. He smiled widely and sat down on the floor, "You guys are in trouble! Get it? 'Cause the game's called Trouble and you're all gonna lose."

Everyone stared at Trip for a moment. Skye looked up at her dad and he gave her a painful look before rolling his eyes and saying, "That's an A for effort Trip but never again please."

Her brother huffed, "Fine, are we playing or what? Skye, what color do you want to be?"

"Blue!" She slid off the couch and took the blue pieces from Trip so that she could set them up on the board, "Mommy, will you be on my team?"

"Sure thing baby." Her mom sat beside her and everyone else got situated around the board.

"Mom's eerily good at this game, this isn't fair," Nattie groaned dramatically.

Skye stuck her tongue out at her sister, "I don't need Mommy's help to beat you Nattie!"

Trip laughed in delight and Nattie put her hands on her hips and gave her a playful look, "You're going down маленькая звезда."

Sure thing, the first time her mom pressed the little bubble that the dice was trapped in, it landed on six and they were able to move out of their home and onto the board track. Nattie groaned and Trip pointed at her and playfully accused her of cheating somehow.

The game continued on and everyone kept getting more and more invested. Trip and Nattie were poking fun at each other and her dad kept making her giggle by trying to move his green pawn more places than what he rolled on the dice.

By the time Skye proudly placed her last blue pawn in the finish spot and claimed her victory, she was smiling broadly and had been successfully pulled out of her odd mood.

* * *

Let me know what you think! And sorry that was so short! xxx


	79. The Coulson's Go Bowling

**Hey guys! This prompt was sent in by carebear02, and it they wanted to see the family go bowling! I couldn't help but pick on Trip in this chapter. I hope you guys like it and thanks for reading! xx**

* * *

"C'mon Skye, our familial bond is about to get put to the test."

Skye looked up from her dolls and saw Nattie standing in her doorway. She set Alice down and sat up, "Huh?"

Nattie sighed heavily and gravely said, "Dad wants to go bowling."

She scrunched up her nose in confusion. She didn't really know what bowling was but she knew the gist of it and she didn't know why her sister was acting like this was her worst nightmare. It didn't seem _too_ terrible.

"Is bowling bad?" She asked.

Her sister picked Skye's combat boots up from the floor by the door, handed them to her, and motioned for her to put them on, "It's not _bad_ , but dad and Trip get really competitive. It can actually be pretty fun to watch."

After lacing up her boots and slowly tying her laces into uneven bows, she stood up and followed her sister out of her room, eager to see what all the fuss was about. They headed downstairs and Skye watched the scene in front of her in confusion. Her dad and Trip were both smiling widely while talking smack to each other. Each of them saying how they were going to beat the other and questioning the other's skills. Her mom was standing off to the side, a bored look on her face, staring at her phone and ignoring the good-natured shouting match going on next to her.

Skye looked up at her sister and Nattie shrugged, "I told you."

She had no idea why going _bowling_ was making her family act like this but she was excited to see why.

"Trip, you only won last time because you cheated!"

"I didn't cheat! I just utilized my environment in a way that worked towards my advantage!"

"Running halfway down the lane just to get a strike is cheating!"

"Even if it was cheating, which I'm not saying that it is, I still beat you and I'll beat you again without using my excellent strategy!"

Before her dad could respond, Skye dashed forward and tugged on his shirt, "Are we gonna go or are you and Trip gonna keep yelling at each other? You both look silly."

Natasha laughed delightedly and her mom jingled the car keys in her hand, "Even your daughter can see how ridiculous you look right now Phil. Let's go."

Trip grumbled to himself but followed their mom and sister out the door while her dad affectionately tugged on the end of her pigtail, "Trip and I are very passionate about bowling. You'll see why when we get there."

She grinned and humored her dad, "Okay Daddy."

* * *

"You have to wear them Skye," Trip tried to hand her the weathered-looking bowling shoes and Skye made a face, "But _why_?"

"Because they won't let you bowl if you don't," Trip said patiently.

Her dad took her shoes from Trip, sat down in front of her, and started unlacing her boots for her, "They're so you don't slip around on the wood sweetheart. If you don't wear them, you could get hurt."

The bowling shoes looked kind of old and didn't smell too good. She wasn't sure she wanted to wear them.

"How come Mommy doesn't have to wear them?" She asked, pointing to where her mom was sitting next to Nattie by their lane, wrinkling her nose in distaste as Nattie laced up her shoes.

"Because Mommy isn't going to bowl. She would rather watch." Her dad answered while taking her boots off of her feet. He tried to get her to step into the shoes but she hesitated.

Her dad smiled up at her, "It'll be worth it, I promise."

Skye huffed but relented and stepped into the bowling shoe her dad was holding out to her.

She was still getting used to the odd feeling of unfamiliar shoes on her feet while Trip set up their score sheet. Her sister motioned her over and Skye skipped over to her. "We need to go pick out a ball, okay? I'll help you."

Nattie led her over to where a bunch of bowling balls were sitting and watched her pick up a glittery green one, "This one's mine. I know it's a good fit because my fingers fit snugly in the little holes and it's not too heavy or light. Let's find you one."

Skye looked around and her eyes settled on a dark blue bowling ball. She ran over to it and tried to pick it up. The ball didn't budge and Skye grunted as she tried to lift it.

Nattie chuckled and shook her head, "That one's too heavy маленькая звезда," Her sister studied the bowling balls surrounding them carefully before picking up a yellow one and offering it to her, "Here, try this one."

Skye took it from her and was relieved to find that it wasn't too heavy. She transferred it from hand to hand experimentally and Nattie showed her how to hold it properly before she decided that it would work for her.

They brought their bowling balls back over to their lane and set them down.

"Let me show you how it's done Skye," Trip motioned her over and she dutifully walked over to where he was standing in front of their lane. He was holding a fluorescent pink ball and was rolling his shoulders. She gave him a confused look and he said, "Just stretching. It's important."

Not sure why it was so important but trusting her brother, Skye mimicked him and rolled her shoulders too. She didn't feel any different when they stopped but Trip was grinning and she smiled back at him.

"Okay, so you hold the ball like this," He showed her how to properly hold the bowling ball and Skye nodded seriously. "Then, you take a step forward, swing your arm back, and then release it. Make sure you don't step over the line though."

Skye nodded like she understood what her brother was saying even though she didn't.

She heard her dad chuckle, "Why don't you just show her Trip."

"You got it. Watch this Skye and prepare to have your mind blown." Trip gave their dad a mock salute and her dad rolled his eyes while Nattie smirked.

Determined to get the hang of bowling, Skye carefully watched as her brother demonstrated the proper form and how to release the ball. Her eyes widened as the ball shot down the lane incredibly fast and knocked over most of the pins.

Her brother raised his fists in triumph before turning back to her, "Now you give it a try."

She didn't think she'd be able to do what her brother had just done. Probably ever. But he gave her an encouraging look and her mom gently nudged her forward, so she took a deep breath, told herself she could do anything she put her mind to, and picked up her bowling ball.

She slowly made her way to stand in front of their lane and jumped back in surprise when two tiny fences popped up on each side of the lane. Not sure if that was supposed to happen, she looked back to her family, "Um…"

Her dad waved off her concern, "We got you bumpers since it's your first time bowling. They'll make it easier sweetheart."

She nodded and focused back on the lane. The bowling pins looked super far away and she didn't know if she'd be able to knock them down, but she was gonna try her best.

She swung her arm back but the ball felt awkward in her hand and she couldn't remember what Trip had told her to do with her feet, so she paused. Rather than doing what Trip had demonstrated, she sat down, set the ball in front of her, shut one eye and tried to line up her ball with the middle pin. Once she had lined it up as best she could, she rolled the ball back a little and then quickly pushed it forward with all of her might.

The ball didn't exactly go where she wanted it to, it slowly zigzagged from side to side, crashing off of the bumpers, but it finally made it to the pins and knocked down two front the edge.

She heard her family cheer her on and Skye jumped up and started hopping up and down, "I win!"

Her brother chuckled, "Good job Skye, but you have to knock over the most pins to win."

Scrunching her nose up at him, she tilted her head in confusion, "But my ball had more fun than yours did going down the lane and I knocked down _two_ pins, so I win." She held up two fingers to emphasize her point.

She stuck her tongue out at her brother and skipped back to the rest of her family before tugging on her dad's arm, "Did you see that? I won!"

"I sure did sweetheart, you did great," Her dad gave her a high-five and Skye ignored how Trip was grumbling behind him.

Skye smiled triumphantly and went to sit beside her mom, who also gave her a high-five and proudly said, "Good job baby, you're a natural."

She settled into her seat and just to taunt Trip a little more, she said, in a sing-song voice, "I beat Trip! I beat Trip!"

Her brother threw his hands up in exasperation and she giggled at him.

"You didn't win Skye, we haven't even really started yet and I knocked more pins down!"

She shook her head and kept singing, "I beat Trip! I beat Trip!"

Natasha laughed and she saw her mom's lips twitch up into a small, amused smile.

Trip looked ready to argue, but her dad put a hand on his shoulder and said, "Let her have her fun kiddo."

Trip relented and Skye stuck her tongue out at him. He pointed at her accusingly and looked to see if their dad had seen what she had done but he hadn't noticed. Skye grinned triumphantly.

* * *

"I win!"

They had finished their game and Skye still wasn't exactly sure what all the rules were supposed to be, but she felt confident saying that she had won.

Trip put his head in his hands and groaned.

"She certainly was the most creative bowler," Her mom commented as she helped Skye pull her bowling shoes off her feet.

Skye smiled proudly and happily said, "My favorite was the one where I spun around a lot and then threw the ball and knocked over those pins!"

"You threw the ball in the wrong lane Skye," Trip pointed out.

Skye shrugged, "Yeah, but it was so _cool_!"

Her dad walked over and looked at their scoreboard, "Actually, Tasha's the winner."

Nattie raised an eyebrow in disbelief and gave them a surprised smile.

"I thought I won though," Skye pouted slightly.

Nattie poked her in the side and shrugged, "We can share the crown маленькая звезда."

She smiled up at her sister and stuck her tongue out at her brother again.

He stuck his tongue out back at her right as their dad turned around and caught him. Their dad reprimanded him and Skye giggled as Trip groaned again and hung his head.

Skye _liked_ bowling.

* * *

Let me know what you think! Thank you so much for reading! :) xx


	80. Skye Gets the Chicken Pox

**Hey guys! I can't believe this collection has 80 chapters and is over 200,000 words! I feel like I should celebrate it or something but I have no idea what to do. Any ideas?**

 **Anyways, this chapter was inspired by inkblot29's prompt about Skye getting the chickenpox! Poor lil baby. This takes place before Skye got the rest of her vaccinations, so she hasn't gotten her booster shot yet. I hope you guys like it! xx**

* * *

"Finish your carrots baby, they're good for you."

Skye pushed the remaining carrots around on her plate, trying to make the small pile of orange vegetables look smaller than it actually was.

She wasn't hungry and usually she was happy to eat the snacks her mom made for her after school because she was always _starving_ , but today, she wasn't feeling too well.

"Are you playing with your food Skye?"

Sighing, she pushed her plate away from her and gave her mom a pitiful look, "I'm not hungry Mommy, my tummy hurts."

Her mom gave her a concerned look, "Did Lincoln give you all his cookies again? Because eating too much sugar can make your tummy hurt."

Skye resolutely shook her head. Lincoln had learned his lesson and he hadn't offered her any of his cookies at lunchtime since she had thrown up at recess.

Her mom looked even more concerned, "Why don't you go lay down for a little bit. Maybe you'll feel better."

"Will you come lay with me?" She asked, sticking out her bottom lip and giving her mom the most pitiful look she could manage. Whenever she felt bad, her mom's cuddles always managed to make her feel better, and she hoped that her mom's magical cuddles would help with her tummy ache.

Her mom looked at the large stack of papers sitting in front of her for a moment before looking back up at her and nodding, "Just for a little while, okay? I need to put a dent in some of this paperwork today."

Skye nodded enthusiastically and tugged her mom into the living room before pushing on her belly. Her mom gave her a bewildered look but let Skye push her onto the couch and once she was lying down, Skye climbed onto the couch after her and laid down right on top of her.

Her mom chuckled and wrapped her arms around Skye, and after burrowing into her mom's chest, Skye quickly fell asleep.

* * *

Skye woke up to a freezing cold hand pressed against her forehead.

She whimpered and tried to lean away from the hand and when that didn't work, she opened her eyes.

She was still lying on top of her mom's chest but unlike before, when she had been pleasantly warm and comfortable, she was now incredibly hot and sweaty. It felt like she was lying on the sun.

She whimpered again and leaned into her mom's cool hand, "I'm hot Mommy."

Her mom brushed her bangs away from her eyes and when she started to pull her hand away from her face, she grabbed it and guided it back to her forehead. The coolness felt amazing.

"You've got a fever baby. Does your tummy still hurt?"

She nodded and sniffled before she reached down to tug her socks off her feet. The cool air hit her feet and for a moment, she felt relief before she started feeling hot again.

She grunted in frustration and started to pull her shirt over her head in an effort to cool off but stopped when it got caught on her arms.

"Mommy, help." She shook her arms to try and get free from her shirt but in the end, it was her mom who successfully pulled her shirt over her head for her.

Free from her shirt, she felt a little better but was still pretty warm. Despite this and the fact that her mom felt like a personal heater, she cuddled back into her mom's chest and sighed.

Her mom rubbed her back soothingly and Skye felt her eyes grow heavy. "Why don't you go back to sleep baby. I'll wake you up for dinner."

Skye gave a tiny nod before falling back asleep.

* * *

It felt like no time at all had passed before her mom was gently shaking her awake and leading her to the dining room table, where everyone else was already seated and eating dinner. Her dad placed a bowl full of soup in front of her and Skye managed to take a few tiny sips before she couldn't eat anymore.

Her family was still eating and giving her concerned looks when she pushed her bowl away from her, slid out of her chair, and climbed onto her mom's lap.

Skye wrapped her arms around her mom's waist and rested her head on her shoulder, "I feel bad."

Her mom made a sympathetic sound and ran her fingers through her hair, "I know, I'm sorry baby."

Skye let the rhythmic motion of her mom combing through her hair lull her into a state of relaxation and before she knew it, her mom was standing up and carrying her upstairs, "How about a quick shower Skye?"

She shook her head and tightened her hold on her mom. She was super tired and just wanted to go to sleep.

"It'll make you feel better baby. You're all sweaty and it'll cool you off."

Skye really didn't feel like taking a shower, but when her mom set her on the bathroom floor, helped her take her shorts off, and placed her into the shower, she didn't put up much of a fight.

She usually liked to wash herself, but she felt too tired to do it this time and let her mom do it for her. By the time her mom was wrapping her up in a fuzzy towel, Skye was relieved to find out that she _did_ feel a little cooler.

She raised her arms so that her mom could pull one of Nattie's old shirts over her head and once she was dressed, she took a step forward and leaned heavily against her mom.

"Oh baby, you must feel pretty bad, huh?"

Skye nodded and closed her eyes as her mom somehow managed to support her and comb her hair at the same time.

"Why don't you sleep with me tonight? How's that sound?"

"Good," Skye said, grateful that she didn't have to ask and risk sounding like a baby.

Her mom lifted her up and carried her into her room. After peeling back the blankets on the big bed, her mom gently deposited her onto it before following after her.

"If you're still feeling bad in the morning, we'll go to the doctor."

Skye made a face at that. She didn't like going to the doctors because they always poked at her and asked her a bunch of questions and she usually had to miss school.

She snuggled into her mom's side and told her body to get its act together so that she didn't have to go to the doctor's tomorrow.

* * *

Skye thought she might still be dreaming when she pulled her shirt up a little bit to see why her chest was so itchy and saw a cluster of reddish-pink spots. They kind of looked like bug bites and they itched like crazy.

She made a surprised sound and reached back to shake the person closest to her to show them her chest.

Her dad jerked awake "Huh? What's going on?"

She pointed to her chest and anxiously said, "I think a bunch of bugs bit me Daddy, look!"

He ran a hand over his face and blinked a few times before leaning closer to examine her chest. She couldn't help but reach up and idly scratch one of the pink spots.

"Uh-oh," Her dad mumbled.

Skye perked up and worriedly looked at her dad, "What? What's wrong?"

She hoped that a spider hadn't bitten her. She didn't think she wanted to turn into Spiderman.

Her dad leaned over and gently shook her mom awake, "Mel, we've got a problem."

Skye jerked back a little in surprise when her mom quickly sat up, already on high alert, and said "What is it?"

Skye wiped her runny nose on the back of her hand and continued to scratch her chest.

"Skye's got the chickenpox."

As soon as her dad said it, Skye wondered why she hadn't thought of that before. A wave of unease and exasperation washed through her and she frowned down at the pink spots on her chest.

She knew what the chickenpox were. One time at St. Agnes', a little four year old had gotten it and he hadn't been allowed to see his friends for a whole week while he stayed stuck in his room so that no one else got it. His little face had been covered in red spots and Skye remembered that he had scratched them so much that some of the spots had started to bleed.

She was not happy about having the chickenpox.

"But she's vaccinated!" Her mom argued.

Her dad shrugged, "Vaccines don't work 100% of the time and she hasn't gotten her booster shot yet. St. Agnes' wasn't great with maintaining a proper vaccination schedule."

Skye interrupted their conversation by whining, "It's _itchy_. Make it stop!"

She went to scratch her chest again but her mom grabbed her hand before she could, "I know it's itchy baby but you can't scratch, okay?"

The itchiness was uncomfortable and constant and she wasn't sure she'd be able to stop herself from scratching, but she nodded anyways.

"Hang on sweetheart, I've got something that might help."

Skye watched helplessly as her dad got out of bed and disappeared into the bathroom.

She turned to her mom, "Mommy, when will it go away?"

"I don't know baby, hopefully soon though." Her mom pulled her into a hug and it didn't escape Skye's attention that her mom made sure that Skye couldn't reach her chest to scratch it.

Skye whimpered again and only leaned away from her mom when she felt the bed dip down and her dad poked her on the arm, "Here sweetheart, let me see your spots."

She dutifully lifted her shirt and sighed in relief when her dad rubbed some lotion onto her chest, "This'll hopefully help with the itchiness."

Her chest still itched but she immediately felt a difference. She let out a huge sigh of relief and carefully pulled her shirt back down.

Her mom rearranged them so that she was cuddled against her chest and her arm was wrapped around her. "Go back to sleep baby."

She tucked her hand under her cheek and looked up at her mom, "Will I be better tomorrow?"

Her mom didn't answer, just leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead instead.

Skye huffed, upset that her mom had basically guaranteed that she _wasn't_ going to be okay tomorrow, and closed her eyes

* * *

"Skye, look over here."

Rather than doing what her sister said, Skye turned her face into the couch cushion, letting out a sigh of relief at how nice the material felt against her itchy face.

"No more pictures Nattie," She mumbled, hoping her sister could understand her.

She heard her sister chuckle, "Aw c'mon, one more. Clint and Bobbi are loving 'em"

Skye sighed and poked her head out from the cushion. She stuck her tongue out at her sister and Nattie quickly raised her phone, "Got it."

"Tasha, leave your sister alone please. She's already suffering enough," Their dad yelled from the dining room.

Her dad was right. For _three whole days_ her body had been covered with little pink spots. By now, most of them looked like blisters and some of them were scabbing over and Skye _hated_ it. Her whole body itched and she was constantly uncomfortable and her dad said she probably still had three more days of this.

The worst part was that her whole family was constantly near her, reminding her not to scratch, when all she really wanted to do was roll around on the floor so that the carpet would scratch her everywhere. It was driving her nuts.

She bit her lip and tried not to focus on the intense itchiness coming from one particular spot on her thigh. After a few long moments, she growled and gave up. Just as she reached her thigh and felt a moment of relief, her brother's hand shot out and grabbed her, preventing her from continuing.

She whined and angrily said, "I _hate_ this! I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!" before bursting into tears of frustration.

Her brother looked lost but fortunately, her mom swept into the room and gathered her up into her arms, "I know you do baby. It's okay."

Skye buried her face against her mom's neck and tried to stop her tears. It didn't really work but her mom didn't seem to mind. She kept rocking her from side to side and pressed kisses onto her head.

"It's not okay Mommy. I wish it would go away!" She leaned back so she could look down at her traitorous body and all the little pink dots that adorned it. She couldn't believe her body had betrayed her like this.

"I know baby. How about you take a nice cool bath and we'll put on some more calamine lotion and then watch Tangled. How's that sound?"

The only thing that they had found to bring relief from the itchiness was a cool bath. It didn't work for too long but Skye savored those few moments where she wasn't constantly stopping herself from scratching all over.

She nodded and let her mom bring her upstairs and drew her a bath.

She drew on the wall with her bath crayons and relished the short amount of time that her body wasn't rebelling against her. Then her mom rubbed lotion all over and dressed her in a loose nightgown before bringing her downstairs to watch Tangled.

Halfway through the movie, when Skye couldn't help but continue to scratch one stubborn spot on her neck, her mom sighed and disappeared upstairs. Skye felt her cheeks heat up in shame and cuddled into her dad's side until her mom reappeared with a pair of socks in hand, "Put these on."

Skye scrunched up her nose in confusion, "I'm already wearing socks."

Her mom's lips twitched up into a small smile and she shook her head, "No, put them on your hands. It'll help stop you from scratching."

Skye was bewildered but she did as her mom said.

With a pair her bright blue socks on her hands effectively stopping her from scratching, Skye hunkered down in defeat and finished the movie, actively ignoring her itchy body.

* * *

"What do you two think you're doing?"

Skye immediately shrunk back at the sound of her mom's disappointed voice and stopped poking at one of the itchy red dots on her arm. They were fading quickly now and her dad estimated that she only had one more day with the chickenpox. Unfortunately for him though, he now had bright red dots all over his chest, face, and arms since yesterday.

"Mel, c'mon. We're _itchy_." Apparently, her mom's disappointed voice didn't have as much of an impact on her dad than it had on her, because he kept scratching the bright red dot on his cheek.

Her mom sighed and raised an eyebrow, "You're setting a bad example for your daughter."

Skye giggled as her dad pouted and stopped his scratching.

"Thank you. No scratching any of your spots, okay you two? They'll scar." Her mom gave them a serious look and Skye nodded dutifully even though the itchiness was driving her nuts.

Her dad visibly brightened for a second but before he could say anything, her mom cut him off, "And _no_ Phil, you can't scratch each other's spots."

Skye watched as her dad deflated and went back to pouting. She giggled again as her mom said, "Honestly, it's like you're the six year old."

Her dad shrugged and her mom left the room after reminding them to tell her if they needed anything. Out of the corner of her eye, Skye saw her dad quickly scratch one of the spots on his arm. She raised her eyebrow in a pitiful imitation of her mother and her dad raised a finger to his lips, "Shh, don't tell your mom."

She rolled her eyes and leaned back into the couch to finish her movie, grateful that she was almost done with the chickenpox.

* * *

Let me know what you guys thought! I've never had the chickenpox before so I got my info from a bunch of first-hand accounts. I hope it was at least semi accurate! Also, go check out my friend's, silverliningineachcloud's, kid!Skye stories and one-shots. They're amazing and she's so talented and awesome!

Thank you so much for reading and send me some prompts and suggestions on how to celebrate this writing milestone! xxxxxx :)


	81. Skye Likes Holding Her Friend's Hands

**Hey guys! This is based off a conversation I remember having in second grade with one of my best friends. Idk why I suddenly remembered it, but I could totally see Skye saying this. I hope you like it :) xx**

* * *

"Lincoln! There's a bird's nest in the tree by the fence! Come look!" She gasped, out of breath from running all the way across the playground to get to where Lincoln was playing by the monkey bars. She pushed her bangs out of her eyes and grabbed Lincoln's hand so that she could drag him over to see the little birdy, "It's so cute!"

Before she could tug Lincoln towards where Jemma and Fitz were waiting for them, he quickly yanked his hand out of hers. She paused and gave him a confused look, not sure why he didn't want to come see the bird with her. It wasn't like he was doing anything super fun, he was just going back and forth across the monkey bars. They did that every day.

"C'mon! It might fly away!" She reached for his hand again but he quickly hid it behind his back.

"What's wrong Lincoln?" She asked. His cheeks were bright pink and he was shuffling his feet around nervously.

She waited, a little impatiently, as Lincoln worked up the nerve to reply. _Finally_ , he muttered, "You can't hold my hand."

Skye scrunched her nose up in confusion, "Why not?"

She was genuinely confused. Just the other day she had held his hand while they walked back to their classroom from the library and he hadn't minded. Skye liked holding hands with all of her friends, even if Fitz's hands got sweaty sometimes and Ward didn't seem to like it, because she knew she wouldn't get separated from them. Plus, it was nice.

Lincoln shuffled his feet some more and avoided eye contact by looking over her shoulder, "'Cause you're not my girlfriend."

Skye took a step back in surprise and couldn't stop herself from laughing.

Her laughter managed to shake Lincoln out of his weird, nervous state, and he crossed his arms indignantly, "Why're you laughing?"

Skye tried to stop laughing and after a few long moments, she managed to choke out, "I don't have to be your girlfriend to hold your hand! I hold Fitz's hand and he's not my boyfriend."

Lincoln shook his head stubbornly, "My babysitter took me to Chuck E. Cheese yesterday."

"What?" Skye wasn't sure how Chuck E. Cheese and handholding had anything to do with each other, but she was eager to find out why Lincoln was suddenly against handholding.

"Her boyfriend came with us. And they _held hands_ ," he stated matter-of-factly, like Skye was supposed to be able to connect the dots right then and there. She was still confused though.

She tilted her head, "Huh?"

Lincoln sighed exasperatedly and slowly said, "Her boyfriend said he only held hands with her, because she's his girlfriend. We can't hold hands 'cause you're not my girlfriend and people might think you are."

Skye couldn't help it. She started laughing again.

"It's not funny Skye! You're only supposed to hold hands with the girl you like. It's what _teenagers_ do." Lincoln sounded upset so Skye managed to stop laughing and took him seriously.

"That's not true. I hold my Daddy's hand when we cross the street and go to the mall and when we go grocery shopping and-"

Lincoln cut her off, "That's _different_. Duh."

Skye wasn't really sure where Lincoln was getting his information, but it was obvious he truly believed that you could only hold hands with you girlfriend or boyfriend. Which was dumb, 'cause she held hands with her friends and family all the time. She wasn't sure how to explain that he was wrong, so she did the best she could, "Nuh-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Nuh-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

Skye stomped her foot, "Nuh-uh Lincoln! You can hold hands with whoever you want! As long as it's okay with them! My Mommy said so!"

Lincoln's face was still bright pink and he stubbornly shook his head, "Whatever! I'm only holding hands with my girlfriend!"

Skye threw her hands up in the air, "You don't even have a girlfriend!"

"Well…" Lincoln hesitated for a second before finding his confidence again, "Well, I'm going to wait 'til I find a girl that I want to be my girlfriend and _then_ I'll hold her hand!"

Putting her hands on her hips, Skye gave him a look that was similar to the one her older brother gave her when she wasn't understanding a simple concept, "You don't _have_ to like girls dummy! What if you like a boy? Will you hold _his_ hand _?"_

Lincoln looked surprised for a moment and tilted his head to the side while he considered this. Skye grinned triumphantly, proud of herself for finding a flaw in Lincoln's odd logic.

Finally, Lincoln shook his head, "No, I think I just like girls. And I only wanna hold my girlfriend's hand."

Skye rolled her eyes and decided to just go along with it, "Fine, hold your girlfriend's hand. But friends can hold each other's hands too."

Lincoln looked uncertain, "But… isn't that weird?"

Skye heaved a heavy sigh, "It's only weird 'cause you're making it weird, dummy!"

Skye was growing tired of this conversation and hoped that the cute little birdy was still sitting happily in its nest so that she could go look at it before recess ended. She impatiently held out her hand one last time.

Lincoln studied her outstretched hand for a few long moments and Skye shook it impatiently. He finally reached out and took it and she smiled widely.

"C'mon! The bird is blue and we should get back before Fitz gives it a bad name! I think we should name it Blueberry!" She chattered happily, her little conversation with Lincoln already forgotten. And once she started tugging him in the direction of the rest of their friends, Lincoln stopped staring at their hands weirdly and followed after her.

* * *

I hope you liked it and let me know what you thought! Thanks for reading :) xx


	82. Skye Misses Her Mommy

**Hey guys! I just wrote this because I needed a break from all the studying. Exams are next week and once those are over, I'll go back to writing from the prompts (btw, keep sending them in!)**

 **Thanks for reading and sticking with me! You guys are the best and I appreciate you all xxxx**

* * *

Skye had _known_ it was coming, she had prepared with Jay and had talked it over with her parents, but it _still_ caught her by surprise how much she missed her mom when she went away for the long weekend.

It had started off alright. Her mom had kissed her and said goodbye and Skye hadn't been able to feel sad because her dad and siblings had quickly ushered her to the park where they had all played together for a few hours. It didn't start to sink in that her mom was going to be gone for _four whole days_ until Skye was sitting down for dinner. Her dad had ordered pizza and cheesy bread and was letting her have a small glass of soda, but as Skye looked around their dinner table, it seemed lonely without her mom sitting there with them.

She poked at her pizza and pouted, "I miss Mommy."

Nattie gave her a sympathetic look and Trip reached over and affectionately tugged on her ponytail, "It's okay Skye, she'll be back before you know it."

Skye shrugged and thought that Trip was probably wrong. Four days felt like _forever_ and Skye was very aware of how much she missed her mom.

Her dad brought some napkins in from the kitchen, dropped them onto the middle of the table, and bent down to press a kiss to the top of her head before sitting down beside her, "Don't worry sweetheart, we're going to have so much fun this weekend that you won't even notice that she's gone."

Skye shrugged again, tore away some of the cheese from the top of her pizza, and nibbled on it.

Nattie seemed to notice that her dad's and brother's words weren't really helping because she leaned in and whispered, "We can facetime Mom tonight. Sound good?"

Finally, Skye cracked a small smile and nodded before taking a big bite out of her pizza.

* * *

"No! Mommy doesn't do it that way!" Skye scrunched up her nose and slapped a hand down into the water, making it splash up against the sides of the bathtub. Skye had recently been getting over her fear of baths and was incorporating them into her routine a few days a week. Her mom always made it much easier and less scary for her but tonight, bathtime was not as fun with her dad as it usually was with her mom.

Skye heard her dad let out a long breath before saying, "How does Mommy do it?"

"She gives me the little towel to put over my eyes so water doesn't get in 'em," she pointed to the small pile of washcloths sitting on the shelf before continuing, "And she sings the bathtime song!"

Her dad grabbed one of the soft washcloths and handed it to her before looking completely lost and confused. Skye couldn't really blame him, usually bathtime was reserved for her and her mom to spend quality time together, so he didn't know the song. Skye was just frustrated with how different everything was without her mom around and she was kind of sick of it. It wasn't her dad's fault.

"What's the bathtime song sweetheart?" He asked as he sat back down beside the bathtub.

Crossing her arms, Skye huffed and felt her eyes well up with tears. Her dad was trying his best but it wasn't the same. She _really_ missed her mom and this was _their_ thing that they did together. She made breakfast with her dad and had bathtime with her mom. It was just what they did.

Her dad sighed again and rubbed a soothing hand between her shoulder blades, "I know it's weird without Mommy here but why don't we try doing bathtime my way? It could be just as fun as Mommy's way."

Skye sniffled and shuddered when some shampoo ran down her back as it dripped from her hair. She slowly uncrossed her arms and nodded.

Her dad gave her a bright smile, "Good! Okay! Let's rinse out your hair."

Skye obediently covered her eyes with the washcloth and leaned back a little so that he could rinse away the shampoo.

She had to admit, the horrible rendition of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, sung off-key and passionately by her dad, was different that her mom's bathtime song, but it was still pretty fun to listen to.

* * *

The nights were the worst.

During the day, she had laser-tag, the playground, jump ropes, and movies to keep her busy. Her dad made sure that their days were packed full of fun activities to keep her mind off of how much she missed her mom. But during the night, there wasn't much that could keep her mind off of how absent her mom was.

"Bedtime sweetheart. C'mon," Her dad poked his head into the playroom and Skye reluctantly set down her crayons down and put them away before she followed her dad to her bedroom.

She slowly climbed onto her bed, unhappy about having to go to sleep again without being able to hug her mom goodnight.

Her dad handed her Alice and Skye pulled the doll close to her chest, "I need to say g'night to Mommy."

"You said goodnight to her right after dinner, remember?" Her dad pulled her blankets over her and tucked her in.

She had talked to her mom after dinner and said goodnight but it was different than saying goodnight right before bed. Skye squeezed Alice closer to her and twisted around so that she was free of her blankets and could sit up.

Shaking her head quickly, she said, "I need to say g'night before bed! Otherwise I'll have bad dreams!"

Her dad pressed a kiss to her forehead and pulled her into a hug, "Your Mom can't talk right now, that's why she called earlier, remember? She's at the rehearsal dinner." Her dad rubbed circles onto her back and leaned back so that he could see her face, "I'll say goodnight and make sure you don't have bad dreams, okay?"

Skye's breath hitched and her eyes filled up with tears, "No, you _and_ Mommy have to say it or it won't work. S-she has to say she loves me to the moon and back!"

She cried silently, frustrated with the whole situation, and her dad pulled her in for another hug.

"I'll try to call her but I think she put her phone on silent sweetheart."

Skye sniffled and eagerly looked down at her dad's phone and watched as he called her mom. He put it on speaker phone and Skye quickly wiped her tears away and cleared her throat so that she would be ready to talk when her mom answered, but it just kept ringing and ringing until they were sent to voicemail.

Hearing the robotic voice tell them to leave a message instead of her mom's voice made her start to cry again. Her chest felt heavy and her heart felt like it had a hole in it and she _knew_ she would feel better if she could just say goodnight to her mom but she couldn't.

Her dad made a sad sound and pulled her onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and cried into his chest.

Skye was sad and mad that her mom had left her. Didn't she know that she needed her? But even though she was a little mad at her mom, she would still do _anything_ to be able to talk to her right now.

After a few long minutes, her tears subsided and she wiped her nose on her sleeve before leaning heavily into her dad. She felt him press a kiss to the top of her head before he murmured, "It's okay sweetheart, I'm right here."

She pressed her face into his soft shirt and let out a pitiful whimper.

Once she had calmed down, her dad situated them so that he was leaning against her headboard and she was cuddled up to his side. He reached over to her bedside table and grabbed a book, opened it up, wrapped an arm around her, and pulled her close before he started reading Goodnight Moon.

She knew every word in the book and the comforting story gave her something to focus on rather than her mom. Once her dad reached the end of her book , her eyes felt heavy and she knew she was close to falling asleep.

Her dad slowly set the book aside and tried to gently pry her off of him so that he could get out of her bed, but when she felt him try to leave, her grip on his shirt tightened and her eyes flew open.

"Goodnight Skye. Sweet dreams." Her dad kissed her forehead and tried to leave again, but she refused to let go of him.

She made a sound of protest and pitifully whispered, "Don't go. Please Daddy, don't go too."

Her dad's face fell and he looked really sad for a moment before he laid back down next to her on the bed. Skye grabbed onto his shirt tightly and snuggled as close to him as she could. She made sure that he looked like he was going to stay before she rested her head on his chest and shut her eyes.

* * *

Skye woke up because she was extremely warm. She kicked her blankets off of her and rolled over, fully prepared to go back to sleep, but opened her eyes when her elbow connected with something solid and she heard a sleepy "Oomph!"

Her dad was rubbing the spot on his stomach where she had elbowed him and giving her a tired smile, "Good morning sweetheart."

Skye rubbed her eyes sleepily and hopefully asked, "Is Mommy back?"

Her dad bit the inside of his cheek and shook his head, "She'll be back this afternoon."

Skye sat up and sighed. Her dad stretched and stood up before reaching down and hauling her into his arms. She squealed and giggled when her dad tickled her sides before setting her on his hip and walking downstairs.

"How about we make some breakfast, wake up your brother and sister, and go to the park? When we get back, we can bring out your fingerpaints." Her dad set her on the counter and began pulling out the toaster and some bread.

Skye nodded eagerly, "Yeah!"

Her dad reached into the fridge and pulled out some strawberry jam, "Good. How does toast and yogurt sound?"

Skye struggled to open up the jam for a few seconds before she succeeded in twisting off the top of the jar. She dunked her finger into the jar, licked the sticky jam off of her fingers, and mumbled, "And apples?"

Her dad grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl and the apple cutter from the drawer, "I can make that happen."

Skye grinned and managed to dunk her finger into the jam one more time before her dad gave her a look and handed her a spoon, "If you're gonna eat from the jar, at least make it less messy."

Part of the fun was using her hands, but Skye took the spoon from her dad and gave him a smile before she dipped it into the jam.

* * *

Skye's fingers were covered in blue and red paint when she heard a car pull into the driveway. She jumped up from the table so fast that she almost spilled the glass full of water she was using to dip her fingers into to clean off the paint. Luckily, her sister caught the glass before it could totter over and spill. Nattie also grabbed the back of Skye's shirt before she could bolt to the front door and get paint everywhere, "Go wash your hands маленькая звезда."

Skye groaned but ran over to the sink and hastily scrubbed the paint off of her hands. By the time she was haphazardly drying her hands on her shirt, her dad was leading her mom through the front door. Both of them were smiling and Skye squealed and shouted, "Mommy!"

Skye rushed towards them and her mom kneeled down and caught Skye when she launched herself into her mom's arms. Her mom laughed loudly and peppered soft kisses all of Skye's face while Skye tried to hug herself as close to her mom as she possibly could.

"I missed you so much baby," her mom whispered between kisses and Skye couldn't help but giggle as her mom's soft hair tickled her cheek.

She squeezed her mom tightly, tucked her face into the crook of her neck, and inhaled her mom's familiar, flowery scent before whispering back, "I missed you too."

The hole that had been hurting her heart ever since her mom had left vanished and Skye felt warm and happy now that her mom was back and everyone was together again.

* * *

Let me know what you thought! Also, to anyone else going through exams right now, my heart goes out to you all! I'm dying over here lol

Thanks for reading! xx :)


	83. Skye Has A Nightmare

**You guys! Ya girl did so good on her exams and got all A's this semester! I'm so happy!**

 **Anyways, this prompt was sent in by YO-MAJESTAY and was "Skye has a nightmare or panic attack and won't let anyone touch her or go near her except natasha." This is basically just like Chapter 50 except it's reversed. I hope you like it and are having a fun holiday season with minimal stress and tons of happiness! xx :)**

* * *

 _Everything was kind of hazy and Skye's eyes couldn't focus on the environment around her. Every time she tried to focus on something, it would change into a different vague shape._

 _She had no idea what was going on but she felt trapped. Her breathing quickened as she anxiously searched for a way out of wherever she was, but no matter where she looked, she couldn't find a door or a window or anything. She continued searching frantically as her chest tightened and it got harder and harder to catch her breath._

 _It was getting darker and darker and Skye was having trouble seeing. She reached out in front of her, hoping she didn't bump into anything, searching for an exit, and screamed,"Help! Help me!"_

 _From far away, she heard a slow creaking that sounded like an old door being opened. She whirled around, hoping to find the source of the sound, but her foot caught on something and she fell to the ground._

 _Skye let out a frustrated sound and whimpered, terrified and confused about what was going on. She cradled her head in her hands and cried hopelessly. It felt like she was never going to get out of this scary, creepy place._

 _She rubbed her eyes and felt a surge of hope rush through her when she saw that there was a soft light coming from her left. She rubbed her eyes again to make sure that she wasn't imagining it and sucked in a breath when she saw two tall figures walking towards her. They were holding hands and at first, Skye was kind of afraid of them. Just like the rest of her surroundings, every time she tried to focus on their faces to see who they were, their features would blur and become less distinct. But then she recognized the long, dark silky hair on one of the figures and she jumped up and waved at them, "Mommy! Daddy! I'm over here!"_

 _Her parents were getting closer and closer and Skye ran to them, a relieved smile on her face. Skye quickly reached them and grabbed their intertwined hands and held them in her own. She let out a breath and shakily said, "I'm scared, where are we?"_

 _Her parents didn't say anything, but they started walking so Skye did too. She walked between them, holding their hands, relieved that she was finally safe with her parents._

 _It felt like they were walking forever before Skye noticed that the grip that her parents had on her hands was getting tighter and tighter, to the point where it was painful and Skye could feel the bones in her hands rubbing together._

" _You're hurting me," She said as she tried to wiggle her hands out of theirs._

 _Her parents just held onto her tighter and Skye whimpered. She looked up at her parents and shrank back in fear when she was finally able to see the details of their faces. The two figures_ looked _like her parents, but Skye could tell that something was wrong with them. Their faces looked scary and cruel and their eyes were full of hatred and anger rather than warmth and love._

 _Skye tried to scramble away from them but they had a firm grip on her and wouldn't let go. They dragged her with them until they must have reached the door that they had come in through. Skye didn't know how, but she_ knew _that if she went through that door, something very bad would happen._

 _She tried to get away from her parents but they were too strong. Her dad held her still while her mom slowly reached out and opened the door._

" _No! I'll be good! No! No!" She screamed, trying desperately to get away._

 _Her parents just laughed cruelly, the sound left a hole in her heart and Skye felt like ice was splashing through her veins, before she was shoved through the door and it immediately slammed shut behind her._

 _The room was pitch black and tiny. When she reached out, she was able to feel all four walls. She frantically banged on the door, hoping that her parents would let her out, but she got no response. She screamed and cried and sank down to the floor when suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she screamed even louder._

* * *

"Skye! It's okay baby, it was just a nightmare."

Skye jerked awake and her eyes flew open. Everything was a little blurry due to the endless stream of tears running down her face, but she screamed and tried to scramble away when she saw her parents leaning over her. She couldn't look at their faces, she knew she wouldn't be able to handle it if she found the cruel and angry expressions on them like she had seen in her dream.

Her dad reached for her and Skye screamed again and, in an effort to get away, fell off of her bed. After catching her breath, she jumped to her feet and looked around frantically for something safe.

Her eyes landed on her sister, who was lingering by her doorway, looking sleepy and concerned. Skye heard her parents speaking softly to her but ignored them, ran to her sister, and threw her arms around her.

Nattie immediately wrapped her up into a tight hug and Skye let out a huge sigh of relief and felt her tears start to slow down.

Her sister ran her hands through her hair and Skye started to slowly calm down. It felt like forever until she was able to catch her breath but she felt safe and warm in her sister's arms and eventually, her tears stopped.

"Sweetheart, are you…" Her dad's voice trailed off when Skye turned away from him, pushing her face into Nattie's soft pajama shirt, rather than turning to him like she normally would have.

It was quiet for a few long minutes and Skye focused on Nattie's heartbeat.

"Baby, it was just a nightmare, you don't have to be afraid," Her mom's voice was soft and soothing but Skye didn't move. She kept her face tucked close against her sister and even managed to press herself even closer to Nattie.

Now that she knew everything had just been a nightmare, a small part of her fears were gone, but she was still afraid that if she looked at her parents, she would see the evil looks on their faces that they had had in her dream.

Nattie leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Are you okay маленькая звезда?"

Skye squeezed her sister tighter and slowly nodded.

It was silent for a moment before her sister whispered, "I think mom and dad are worried about you, can you tell them that you're okay?"

Skye sucked in a deep breath and mumbled, "'M okay."

She heard her sister and her parents talking softly above her but couldn't hear what they were saying. Finally, Nattie focused on her and uncertainly asked, "Would you feel better if mom and dad weren't here right now?"

Skye thought it over and guiltily nodded. Her eyes filled with more tears and Skye felt awful. She had _never_ been afraid of her parents before and she _knew_ that her parents in her dreams were nothing like her real parents. Her real parents kept her safe and happy and gave her choices and respected her decisions and would never, ever hurt her. But the parents in her dream had _scared_ her. They had been like her old foster parents, scary and mean, and Skye didn't know how to process that. It was terrifying to have all of her old fears come back to haunt her and take on the faces of her parents.

She heard the rustling of clothing and then her parents were walking past her and out of her room.

"I love you sweetheart," Her dad murmured.

"I love you to the moon and back, baby," Her mom said softly, and Skye could _tell_ that her mom wanted to give her a hug just from her voice, but she didn't. And wasn't that proof enough that her parents were nothing like the parents in her dream? Her mom and dad respected her boundaries and wouldn't hug her without her explicit permission. But before Skye could think it over too much, Skye heard her bedroom door being shut and she jumped at the soft creaking sound it made. She pushed her way out of her sister's arms and tried to open the door, but her palms were too sweaty and she couldn't get a grip on the doorknob. Before she could start to panic, Nattie was gently brushing her hand out of the way and opening the door for her.

Skye made sure that the door was wide open before turning and pointing to her windows and whispering, "And… and the windows too?"

Her sister didn't question her, she just walked around her room and opened all of her windows, even though it was pretty chilly outside. Skye didn't know if she'd be able to explain why she felt the need to have multiple escape routes.

Once her sister was done, she sat on the bed and patted beside her. Skye shook her head at the obvious invitation and sat down by her dollhouse instead, "I'm not tired."

Nattie gave her a doubtful look but got up and sat down beside her anyways, "It's three in the morning маленькая звезда, you should try to go back to sleep."

Skye shook her head and picked up a handful of dolls, "I said I'm not tired!"

"Okay," Nattie said calmly and reached out to try to tame some of Skye's unruly hair. Skye leaned into the touch and uncertainly offered Nattie a doll, hoping that her sister would play with her and help her keep her mind off of her nightmare.

Nattie took the doll and gave her a concerned look but played with her anyway.

* * *

"It's okay, just shut your eyes маленькая звезда."

Skye sleepily shook her head and didn't mind when Nattie pulled her onto her lap and cradled her close.

They had been up for a few hours and the sun was starting to rise. They had played with dolls for awhile before they started coloring, and then Nattie tried to teach her how to braid, and now they were playing a half-hearted game of Sorry. Skye had kept busy the whole time in an effort to keep her mind off of her nightmare.

Nattie leaned over and tugged a fluffy blanket off of her bed before wrapping it around the both of them and leaning back against the wall.

Skye rested her head against Nattie's shoulder and tried to keep her eyes open, "I'm not even tired Nattie."

Her sister sighed and hugged her a little closer, "I know you're tired Skye, you don't have to lie to me."

Skye bit her lip and shrugged, too tired to argue.

"You're just scared to close your eyes because you don't want to see your nightmare again."

She looked up at her sister in surprise, not sure how Nattie would have known that. Her sister raised an eyebrow and said, "I get nightmares too, remember?"

Nattie squeezed her comfortingly and said, "I know what it's like to not want to close your eyes, but I'll be right here and will keep you safe."

Skye twirled a section of Nattie's bright red hair around her finger and thought about it. It was comforting to know that her sister knew exactly what she was going through. She shouldn't have been surprised, Nattie always seemed to understand her and was always able to say exactly the right thing.

"Will you wake me up if I have a nightmare?" She asked.

"Of course, I'll wake you up at the first sign of one, I promise."

Skye nodded sleepily, unable to keep her eyes open any longer, and felt Nattie press a kiss to the top of her head before she fell asleep.

* * *

Skye woke up to the sound of soft voices whispering around her.

She kept her eyes closed, happy that she hadn't had another nightmare and was able to get a few hours of dreamless sleep, and listened.

"I think she's alright dad, she was just scared." Nattie whispered.

"Did she tell you what she dreamed about?" Her mom asked.

Skye felt Nattie fix the blanket and tuck it around her shoulders before answering, "She didn't say anything but it must've been pretty bad."

It was quiet for a few long minutes and Skye was tempted to open her eyes but she didn't.

"She was afraid of us," Her dad whispered. He sounded so sad and upset that Skye wanted to give him a hug to make him feel better, but she still couldn't force herself to look at her parents, afraid of what she might see.

Nattie tried to reassure their parents, "She wasn't afraid of you, she was afraid of her nightmare. She was just mixing the two up because she was scared."

Skye moved around a little, unable to hear the conversation or the broken tone of her parents voices any longer. She pulled her blanket up under her chin and turned so that her face was pressed up against Nattie's chest.

"Good morning baby, how're you feeling?" Her mom's voice was soft and kind and hopeful and Skye willed herself to just to turn around and look at her parents, maybe give them a smile or a hug or _anything_ , but she couldn't.

Instead, she pulled her blanket up a little higher and sleepily mumbled, "M'alright"

"Oh, that's great sweetheart. We're going to go make some breakfast, come down when you're ready." Her dad was going a pretty good job of disguising it, but Skye could still hear the confusion and hurt in his voice. It made her feel even worse.

Skye heard her parents leave and then Nattie was repositioning them so that Skye was sitting and Nattie could see her face.

Her sister pressed a kiss to her forehead and asked, "Why won't you look at mom and dad маленькая звезда?"

Skye shrugged her shoulders and played with her fingers in an attempt to avoid the question. But when her sister continued to stare at her patiently, Skye sighed and crossed her arms over her chest, "'Cause what if… what if…"

Skye's throat tightened up and she was unable to continue talking.

Natasha pulled her in for a hug and ran her fingers through her hair. Her sister was silent but Skye immediately felt comforted.

She swallowed a few times and told herself that she could tell her sister anything and even if Nattie didn't understand, she would still listen.

She rubbed her eyes and caught her breath, "'Cause what if they're like they were in my dream?"

Nattie tilted her head and asked, "What were they like in your dream?"

Skye reached out and played with her sister's hair, just for something to do to avoid looking at her sister's understanding face. She twirled the bright red hair around her finger and found that it was easier to talk when she didn't have to face Nattie, "They were scary and bad and mean, and they threw me away… like my old foster parents."

Her sister made a soft sound and pulled her in for another hug. Skye cuddled close and let Nattie comfort her.

"маленькая звезда, it's okay to be scared, but don't confuse mom and dad with the ones in your dream. You _know_ mom and dad are different."

She _did_ know that, but she was still afraid and she couldn't help it.

She nodded and wrapped her arms around Nattie's neck so that she could hug her even tighter.

The moment was broken by her tummy growling loudly.

Her sister chuckled and leaned back, "Hungry?"

Skye cracked a tiny grin, "Yeah."

"Me too, it's already ten. We slept for a long time. Want to go see what mom and dad are making?"

Skye nodded again and stood up with Nattie. They both walked downstairs and Skye kept a tight grip on her sister's hand.

She could hear plates clinking in the kitchen and the sound of her parents talking and shifted so that she was half-hidden behind Nattie.

Her sister squeezed her hand and then they were walking into the kitchen. Her parents quieted down and Skye's eyes remained glued to the floor. She tugged on Nattie's hand, trying to pull her sister into the dining room, but her sister stayed still.

"We made you pancakes baby."

"Chocolate chip pancakes! And strawberries. Your favorite."

Skye focused intensely on her feet as she shuffled them back and forth and mumbled, "Thank you."

Her dad sounded uncertain, "Well, why don't you and Tasha go sit down, we're almost done in here."

Skye tugged on Nattie's hand in response and this time, her sister let herself be pulled into the dining room. Skye scooted her chair as close to her sister's as she could before climbing onto it.

Nattie leaned down and quietly said, "I know I said that it's okay to be scared, and that's true, but you don't have to be, маленькая звезда. I'm right here and you can hold my hand but look, mom and dad are just like they've always been. They aren't mean or scary and they love you and want to make sure that you're okay."

Nattie reached out and intertwined their pinkies and Skye teared up a little.

She leaned into her sister's side and took a deep breath. She told herself that Nattie was right, that her real parents and the parents in her dream were nothing alike and that she should just conquer her fear and _look_ at them so that she could confirm it.

Nattie squeezed her pinkie and Skye counted to three and then looked towards where her parents were cooking in the kitchen.

Her parents looked like they always did. Her dad was humming off-key and flipping pancakes with a tiny smile on his face, even as he messed up the flip and half of the pancake batter when flying across the griddle. Her mom was shaking her head good-naturedly and trying not to laugh at her dad as she cut up some more strawberries and tossed them into a bowl.

Skye grinned a little and Nattie said, "See? They're just like they always are. Kinda silly but super happy. Not scary at all."

"I guess so."

"It's okay to still be a little scared of your nightmare, but you don't have to be scared of mom and dad," Nattie said softly.

Skye haphazardly hopped off of her chair and into her sister's lap so that she could hug her sister real tight, "Thanks Nattie."

"No problem маленькая звезда."

Her parents came into the dining room, hands full of food, and her dad cautiously asked, "Who's ready for some pancakes?"

Skye sat up straighter in her sister's lap and made sure that she looked directly at her dad when she said, "I am."

Her parents gave each other surprised looks and her dad was maybe a little _too_ enthusiastic when he set a plate full of pancakes in front of her.

* * *

I love these two so much! Let me know what you thought and thanks for reading! xx


	84. Skye Needs A Job

**Hey guys! I hope everyone's having a great holiday season! I've been feeling kind of down lately and this kind of just happened. It's a little angsty, fair warning. Thank you for reading! xx**

* * *

Melinda felt a gentle tug on her sleeve, "Mommy?"

She set down the string of garland that she was trying to wrap around the staircase and gave Skye her full attention, "Yeah?"

Skye bit her lip and played with her fingers for a moment before straightening up and saying, "I need a job."

Melinda felt gentle amusement at the seriousness of her six year-old's voice but she could tell that Skye had thought about this for awhile so she didn't let her amusement show. Instead, she raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why do you need a job?"

Skye's momentary confidence seemed to waver and she went back to fiddling with her fingers as she glanced around nervously.

She guessed that Skye probably needed money to buy a new toy or to buy someone a present since it was the holiday season, but she wanted to hear it from Skye herself.

"Because…" Skye looked nervous and a little guarded, "Because I need money."

Her daughter looked proud of herself for evading the question while still giving an answer. Melinda shrugged lightly, she didn't need to know _why_ Skye needed money, just that she was determined to make some. "Well, I don't think anyone's hiring children," Skye's face fell in disappointment, "But, I might have some jobs for you."

"Really?" Skye perked up and stopped playing with her fingers. Melinda really did have a couple of easy jobs around the house that Skye would be able to handle, especially since the holiday season was so hectic for her, and depending on how hard Skye wanted to work and how much she wanted to make, she was sure she could come up with quite a few odd jobs to keep Skye happy. Plus, there was no way she could say no to the hopeful look on her daughter's face.

"Really. I'll give you a couple bucks if you wash my car for me, I hate doing that." Skye giggled and nodded excitedly. "I'll make you a list after we finish decorating, okay baby?"

"Okay, thank you Mommy!" Skye leaned in to give her a tight hug and she leaned down to press a quick kiss to the top of her head.

Natasha's voice floated over her shoulder and they both turned to look at her, "Hey маленькая звезда, I'll give you a dollar if you disconnect Pietro's phone from the speaker and plug mine in. His music is awful."

Wanda nodded alongside Tasha as she tried to get a colorful cutout of a menorah to stick to the staircase.

Skye hopped up and down for a moment before rushing by them, shouting "Okay!"

It only took a second before Pietro's music abruptly stopped and Tasha's music started filling the house. They heard Pietro shout "Hey!" and Wanda laughed lightly and then Skye was back beside them, holding Pietro's phone. She handed Tasha his phone and held out her hand expectantly. Natasha chuckled, dug through her pocket, and handed a dollar to Skye, "You work fast."

* * *

Whereas before, Melinda didn't question why Skye needed money, she was now pretty curious. Skye had been a busy little girl for the last two weeks. She had done every single job that Melinda and Phil had given her happily and carefully and Melinda had been impressed with her youngest child. Skye had also been getting a fairly steady income from her siblings, who thought it was hilarious to pay her to annoy each other.

In short, Skye was making some serious money, between her odd jobs and the amount of times Natasha paid her to mess with Trip and Pietro, and Melinda was very curious as to why Skye needed so much money. The little girl had to have close to thirty dollars now and Melinda hated to admit it, but the mystery was driving her nuts.

Three days before Christmas, Melinda finally got her answer.

She and Phil were wrapping gifts in their room when they heard a tentative knock on her door.

They immediately shoved all of the gifts under their bed and made sure everything was hidden before shouting at whoever it was to come in.

The door creaked open and Skye poked her head in before taking a deep breath and shuffling all the way into the room.

Melinda shared a concerned look with Phil before giving Skye a small smile, "What's up baby?"

Skye stared intensely at the ground and mumbled something.

"What was that sweetheart?" Phil asked.

Skye let out a sigh and spoke a little louder, "Will you take me to the store please?"

Melinda wasn't sure why Skye was acting so nervous and reserved but it was concerning her.

"Sure thing baby, go put your shoes on and give us a few minutes, okay?"

Skye nodded hastily and disappeared down the hallway.

"What was that about?" Phil asked.

She shrugged, stood up, and looked around for her phone, "I'm not sure. She probably wants to buy what she's been saving up for."

Phil helpfully handed her phone to her and she gave him a quick kiss and a questioning look, "You coming? I want to see what all the fuss has been about."

Phil stood up beside her, "Of course, this secret has been _killing_ me."

Melinda chuckled and pushed him out the door.

* * *

"Skye?"

Melinda twisted around in the passenger seat so that she could look at her daughter, who was staring out the window, lost in thought.

Her daughter jumped a little at her voice and Melinda's concern only grew.

"Yeah?"

"Are you alright? You've been acting a little funny."

Skye kicked her feet back in forth and nodded slightly, "I'm okay."

Melinda shared a look with Phil and she could tell that he was worried about Skye's odd behavior too. He glanced at the rear view mirror and gave Skye a gentle smile, "Are you sure? You can tell us if anything's bothering you, you know that, right?"

"I know Daddy," Skye said before she went back to looking out the window and quietly murmured, "I just need to do this one thing."

It was becoming more and more obvious that whatever Skye was up to, she needed to do on her own, so Melinda reached back and patted Skye's knee so that she knew that they were there to support her.

* * *

When they got to the store, Melinda expected Skye to lead them to the back where the children's toys were located, but instead, Skye looked around for a few long moments before leading them in the opposite direction. Melinda was confused but she let Skye tug them around the store until they stopped in front of a small display of bouquets.

Skye let go of her hand so that she could go and inspect every single bouquet.

She looked over to Phil to see if he had any clue about what was going on, but he gave her a shrug and a confused look, and she was a little comforted knowing that they were in the same boat.

It took about twenty minutes before Skye finally picked out two small bouquets. One had a few small white and pink roses with baby's breath wrapped around them and the other was full of daisies and carnations. The bouquets were simple but beautiful and Melinda was feeling more and more confused, but Skye didn't offer up an explanation as she led them towards the cash registers to buy her flowers.

It wasn't until they were back in the car that Melinda finally understood.

Melinda was buckling Skye into her booster seat while her daughter carefully held a bouquet in each hand. Skye was being very gentle with the flowers and was making sure that none were being squished when Melinda finished buckling her in and asked, "Now what Skye?"

Skye checked over the flowers one more time before breathing in shakily. Melinda's heart ached when she saw the tears in her daughter's eyes and Skye sadly whispered, "Can we go to the cemetery?"

* * *

Skye was gripping her two bouquets so tightly that her knuckles were turning white but Melinda watched the little girl walk determinedly through the cemetery. Skye didn't hesitate as she trudged past grave after grave towards the back of the cemetery. She and Phil trailed after her dutifully and Melinda noted that most of the gravesites were decorated for the holidays or had flowers placed in front of them.

She nearly bumped into Skye but Phil tugged on her arm in time for her to realize that Skye had stopped in front of two small gravestones, marked John Harvey and Alexandra Harvey.

She and Phil took a few small steps back to give Skye some space and watched as the little girl carefully placed a bouquet by each gravestone and fussed with them until they were lying perfectly before sitting down between the two graves. Skye placed a hand on each gravestone and looked around uncertainly. Melinda wasn't sure what she was doing until Skye started speaking and she realized that the little girl wasn't sure where she should be directing her words.

In the end, Skye ended up talking to the gravestones in a soft, shaky voice, "I miss you guys a lot and I hope you're happy w-wherever you are. Mommy and Daddy say you're in heaven with the angels and that you're watching over me. I dunno if you're really there, but it's nice to think you are."

Skye patted the two gravestones and poked some of the flowers on one of the bouquets, "I… I didn't want you to think that I wasn't thinking about you, so I brought you both flowers. I hope you like them."

Melinda's heart was aching and her eyes were rapidly filling with tears when she felt Phil wrap an arm around her and pull her into his side. Skye's words were breaking her heart but she was still so proud of how kind-hearted and thoughtful her daughter was.

Skye was still talking softly about how she was doing in school, how she had just learned a new song in music class, how she and Natasha were working on a large mural for fun because they were bored over holiday break, and how she was excited for Santa to come on Christmas.

They were there long enough for Skye to start shivering and Melinda wanted to reach out and fix Skye's hat and scarf for her but she didn't want to ruin this private moment for the little girl. After a few more moments, Skye stood up and stared at the graves before leaning forward and awkwardly hugging each gravestone. Melinda discreetly wiped a tear off of her cheek and shoved her hand back into her coat pocket.

Skye said something too quietly for her to hear and then the little girl was running towards them with tears in her eyes. Melinda lifted her daughter up and held her close. Skye pushed her cold face into her neck and stammered, "I d-didn't want them t-to think I forgot about them."

Phil wrapped his arms around the both of them and kissed Skye's head, "They know you'd never forget them."

Skye sniffled, sat up in Melinda's arms, and rubbed her eyes, "I k-know, but you're supposed to be with y-your family for the holidays and I was t-their only family. I didn't want them to be al-lone."

Skye tucked her face back into Melinda's neck and she rocked her daughter back and forth.

Melinda wasn't really sure what to say but she found that Skye usually appreciated how actions sometimes spoke louder than words, so she squeezed Skye a little tighter and walked over to the gravesites. She brushed a hand over one gravestone, and then the other, before whispering, "You both will always have a place in our family, I promise."

Melinda meant it too. The Harvey's had been a bright spot in Skye's dark past and Melinda will always appreciate them for that. Anyone who had had that big of an impact on Skye were always welcome in her family.

Skye squeezed her tighter and Melinda asked her, "Are you ready to go home?"

Skye nodded and the three of them started to make their way out of the cemetery when Skye mumbled, "Can we visit them more often?"

"Of course we can baby. We can visit whenever you want."

* * *

Let me know what you guys thought and tell me about your holidays! I promise, I'll be back to writing prompts soon! Thank you so much for reading! xx :)


	85. The Coulson's Go To Disney World

**Hey guys! I was kind of surprised by how many people actually enjoyed the last chapter. This one's on the opposite side of the spectrum and is one hundred percent fluff.**

 **This prompt has been sent in by so many people that I lost track of who requested it, but I'm finally writing the family going to Disney and I hope you like it! I'm splitting it up into two parts because there's so much to write and I'm also just going to have them visit Magic Kingdom. This part will have Skye meeting some princesses and the next chapter will be the family at the park. Thank you for reading! xx**

* * *

"Skye! Could you come here?"

Skye set her math homework down and hopped up, happy to have an excuse to ignore her stupid subtraction problems. She skipped down the hallway and into her parent's room.

Her dad was practically vibrating with excitement and Skye grinned and ran over to him, "What's going on?"

"We have a surprise for you," Her mom said and motioned for her to come sit next to her on the bed. Skye immediately hopped up and cuddled close to her mom's side, "What is it?"

Skye could tell that this was a good surprise and she was dying to know what it was. The suspense was _killing_ her.

She tugged on her mom's arm impatiently and her mom chuckled before shifting her laptop so that Skye could see the screen.

Skye's eyebrows scrunched together as she peered at the screen and she only had a moment to notice the Walt Disney World logo and a picture of two girls wearing tiaras and spinning around in a teacup before her dad jumped onto the bed next to her and blurted out, "We're going to Disney World!"

It was quiet for a few long moments while Skye looked from her dad, to her mom, to the laptop screen, and back again, but then when it finally registered in her mind what her parents were telling her, she screamed loudly and started jumping up and down.

"Really?!"

Her mom and dad laughed loudly and nodded, "Really."

Skye was so full of happiness and excitement that she felt like she was going to explode. She wanted to run around or dance or go tell everyone she knew that _she_ was going to go to _Disney World_ , a place she had only dreamed she would be able to go, but rather than doing any of that, she ended up tackling her parents and hugging them both tightly.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, _thank you!_ " She yelled over and over again as her parents continued to laugh and hug her back, "You're welcome baby."

Skye couldn't stop laughing and smiling and she pulled away from her parents so that she could jump up and down on the bed.

Her dad grabbed her mid-jump and sat her back down before tickling her sides, "No jumping on the bed, you little monkey."

Skye laughed even harder as her dad tickled her and her cheeks started to ache a little bit but she didn't care because her family was taking her to _Disney World_.

Her dad stopped when Trip walked into the room and asked, "What's going on?"

He looked thoroughly confused and Skye wiggled away from her dad and ran over to her brother, "We're going to Disney World!"

* * *

"The most magical place on earth would be a lot more magical if the lines weren't so long," Natasha grumbled and Skye rolled her eyes. She skipped in circles around her sister and said, "The lines aren't bad Nattie and besides, we're going to see _Rapunzel_! I would wait _forever_ to see her!"

Skye was still skipping in circles around her sister and Nattie reached out and pulled her close as two little boys sprinted past them and almost knocked Skye over. Nattie sent the two boys a scathing look and Skye just wrapped her arms around her sister's waist and rested her chin on her hip so that she could look up at her.

Disney World was better than Skye could have ever imagined. The rides looked like so much fun and all of her favorite characters were scattered around the park and Skye was having a blast searching for all of them. Everything was interesting and colorful and there was so much going on that Skye was having trouble paying attention to one thing for longer than a few moments, but as soon as they had walked into the park, Skye had been _determined_ to find Rapunzel.

She had immediately asked her parents where her favorite character was and then dragged her family to Fantasyland, where Rapunzel was. They had bypassed a bunch of fun-looking rides and a lot of other characters but Skye marched past them all, to the amusement of her family, and only paused for a few minutes to admire Cinderella's giant castle.

They were now waiting in line to see Rapunzel. Even though they had gotten to the park as soon as it had opened, there was still a lot of people milling around, but the line wasn't too long.

Skye smiled up at her sister and tugged on her shirt, "How much longer?"

Natasha looked up and squinted at the little clock that estimated how much longer they'd be in line, "Fifteen minutes."

Skye heaved a huge sigh but then shrugged, "That's not bad."

Nattie rolled her eyes but gave Skye a small smile, "You excited?"

"Yes!" Skye yelled. She felt jittery and she couldn't stay still and she was more excited than she could ever remember being to meet Rapunzel.

Her sister chuckled and Skye carefully stepped on top of her sister's feet and tugged on Nattie's hands until her sister shook her head fondly and started walking around the rest of their family in circles, taking exaggerated steps, and Skye squealed as she tried to stay balanced on top of Nattie's feet.

Her sister and brother kept her distracted for the fifteen minutes until they were near the front of the line, inside Fairytale Hall where Rapunzel, Anna, and Elsa were, and Skye's excitement started to turn to nervousness. She abandoned her siblings and squeezed between her parents, who were standing close together and talking quietly.

They stopped talking and smiled down at her and Skye squished herself close to her mom's side as she tried to peer around the family in front of her, hoping to get a glimpse of Rapunzel. It was no use, they had to walk through a door to get into the room that the princesses were in, but she tried nonetheless.

She felt a gentle hand in her hair and leaned even further into her mom.

"Are you excited?"

Skye nodded and felt her heart start to beat faster and faster when the family in front of them were ushered into the room and she realized that she was next in line to see Rapunzel.

What if Rapunzel didn't like her? What was she going to say to her favorite princess?

She anxiously adjusted her Rapunzel tiara on her head and tightened her grip on her mom's shirt. Her parents seemed to pick up on her nervousness and she felt her mom brush her bangs away from her face and her dad reached over and tapped her nose to get her attention. He held up his camera and smiled at her, "I'll take a bunch of pictures and we can hang them up in your room when we get home."

Skye nodded again and gave them a small smile.

It felt like there were a bunch of butterflies swirling around in her belly and she could feel her heart crashing into her ribs and after the longest wait in her life, the door opened and her parents guided her into the large room where Rapunzel was smiling on one side and Anna and Elsa were taking pictures with another family on the other side.

Rapunzel smiled brightly at them and glided towards them, 'Hello everyone! I'm so glad you came to see me today!"

Skye stayed tucked in close to her mom's side and she looked, wide eyed, at Rapunzel. She was wearing her pretty pink dress and her long blonde hair was braided and decorated with colorful flowers and hanging over her shoulder.

Her mom tried to nudge her towards the princess but Skye was too starstruck to move. Her dad smiled widely, "Hi Rapunzel, we've got someone here who has waited a very long time to see you."

He motioned towards her and Rapunzel focused on her and kneeled in front of her, "Oh wow, is that right?"

With Rapunzel's full attention on her, Skye felt her cheeks heat up and she nodded shyly.

Rapunzel's smile widened, "What's your name?"

Skye looked up to her mom, who grinned and nodded, before taking a steadying breath and quietly saying, "I'm Skye."

Rapunzel gasped and clapped her hands together, "Oh that's a beautiful name! Did you know that the night sky is one of my favorite things to paint? I have a giant painting of it in my tower!"

Skye shook off some of her nerves, nodded, and took a tentative step towards the princess.

"Skye's your biggest fan. You're her favorite princess," Her dad supplied helpfully and Rapunzel looked up at him before looking back at her with a delighted look on her face, "Really? I'm your _favorite_? I'm so honored! Could I maybe take a picture with you Skye? Flynn's not going to believe this!"

Rapunzel offered her her hand and Skye eagerly took it and let her lead her towards a carpet, where Rapunzel kneeled down again and Skye moved closer to her so that she was standing right next to her, slightly leaning into her side. Skye couldn't believe this was happening.

Rapunzel leaned in close and grinned, "I love your tiara, it looks beautiful on you."

Skye reached up and touched her tiara and smiled shyly, "Thank you."

Rapunzel settled her long braid so that it draped over her shoulder beautifully and happily exclaimed, "I can't believe I'm your favorite princess! This is the best day ever!"

Skye reached out and tentatively touched one of the flowers that decorated Rapunzel's hair. They were so close and Rapunzel was leaning towards her and talking like they were best friends and Skye didn't know why she had been so nervous earlier, she felt happy and excited and comfortable now.

She put a hand on Rapunzel's shoulder and looked up at her. Skye really wanted Rapunzel to know that she has always been her favorite, "You'll be my favorite forever and ever, I promise! You got taken away from your parents and I did too and I lived with mean people too until I finally found my forever family. We're the same!"

Rapunzel's face softened and she leaned in closer, "Well, us princesses have to stick together, don't we?"

Skye nodded earnestly, happy that Rapunzel considered her a princess.

"Can I have a hug?"

Skye didn't hesitate to throw her arms around Rapunzel and hug her tightly. She felt Rapunzel wrap her arms around her and hug her gently.

"Let's take a picture together!"

Skye reluctantly let go of Rapunzel and squished herself as close to her favorite princess as she could so that they could take their picture. Rapunzel laughed and wrapped an arm around Skye's back and tugged her closer before smiling brightly. Skye looked up at her in wonder, unable to believe that she was actually here, snuggled close to Rapunzel.

The photographer called out, "Over here princess!," to get her attention and she looked over to the photographer and her dad and smiled brightly.

Once the pictures were done, Rapunzel turned back towards her and cheerily said, "It was so wonderful to meet you Skye!"

Realizing that her time with Rapunzel was coming to an end, she threw her around around the princess and hugged her tightly again. Rapunzel laughed happily and squeezed her tightly and Skye smiled into the princess's shoulder and reluctantly let go, "Bye Rapunzel."

"Bye Skye. I'm so happy I got to meet you. I hope you'll come back and see me soon!" Rapunzel smiled beautifully and stood up.

"Me too," Skye said wistfully.

She took a step to where her family was waiting for her but Rapunzel stopped her and leaned down to whisper, "Remember to always follow your dreams Skye, and don't let anyone hold you back. If I had stayed in my tower, I never would have found my family."

Skye nodded, still starstruck, and waved goodbye. Rapunzel blew her a kiss and Skye turned away and ran back over to her family. Skye's eyes were wide and she was still so amazed that she had actually met Rapunzel. She was so pretty and nice and the best and she thought that Skye was a princess, just like her.

Her mom chuckled and ushered her forward in the line to see Anna and Elsa when Skye was too stunned to notice that the line had moved. Her dad crouched down in front of her, "You alright?"

Skye nodded, still a bit dazed. She had just _met and talked to Rapunzel_.

Her dad laughed and pushed her bangs out of her eyes, "Wasn't that so cool? Rapunzel seemed very nice."

Skye finally snapped out of her odd stupor and hopped on her toes, "She was! She was so nice! Daddy, I just met Rapunzel!"

"I know, was it as awesome as you thought it'd be?"

Skye sighed happily and twisted around to try to get another look at the princess, "It was even better!"

"Well, you're about to meet some more princesses."

Skye turned back around and saw Anna walking towards her, "Hello there! Oh Elsa, look! She's got a tiara just like our friend Rapunzel! Have you already met our friend?"

Skye nodded excitedly, took Anna's hand, and let the princess lead her back towards Elsa, "Yeah! I just saw her! She's awesome."

Anna and Elsa grinned and knelt down beside her. Anna nodded happily, "She's one of our very best friends. She even visited us in Arendelle once!"

Skye's eyes widened, "Really?"

Elsa nodded and wrapped an arm around her, "Really!"

Skye wondered if all of the princesses were best friends and if they all visited each other.

Anna tapped her shoulder playfully, "What's your name?"

"I'm Skye."

"Are you having fun today Skye?"

Skye nodded enthusiastically, "It's the best day ever!"

Anna and Elsa both laughed and Skye remembered something. She gently tugged on Anna's sleeve to get her attention, "Anna, guess what?"

"What?"

She giggled and pointed over to where Nattie was standing, "My sister looks like you in the morning!"

Anna and Elsa both laughed and Skye giggled some more when she heard Nattie indignantly say, "Skye! No one looks good in the morning!"

Elsa motioned for Nattie to come and join them before turning to her, "This is your sister? What's her name?"

She reached out when Nattie got close enough and grabbed her hand, "Uh huh! Her name's Nattie and she's my best friend!"

Anna and Elsa shuffled over so that Nattie could fit between them next to Skye before Elsa said, "Sister's are the best, aren't they? Anna's my best friend too!"

Anna awwed and gave Elsa a hug before turning back to her, "It's always good to have a big sister around to keep an eye out for you. If it wasn't for Elsa, I would've married that evil Hans!"

Skye scrunched up her nose, "He's mean! I'm glad you didn't marry him."

Elsa nodded and Anna let out a big breath, "You and me both! Can we get a picture with you guys?"

Skye nodded happily, leaned into her sister's side, and wrapped an arm around Elsa so that they could take a picture. Everyone smiled and Anna exclaimed, "Everyone say 'chocolate cake'!"

"Chocolate cake!"

Once their pictures were taken, Skye gave Anna and Elsa hugs and waved goodbye before she scurried back over to the rest of her family.

They walked out of Fairytale Hall and back into the sunlight and Skye couldn't stop jumping around. She had met Anna and Elsa and Rapunzel and this was the best day ever! She laughed happily and tugged on her mom's shirt, "I met Rapunzel! I met her!"

"I know baby, wasn't it awesome?"

Skye sighed dreamily and nodded, "It was _so_ awesome. She's so nice and pretty!"

Her dad chuckled and grabbed onto her hand, "Are you ready to explore the rest of the park?"

"Yes!"

* * *

Let me know what you think! For some reason, this was super hard to write, so I hope it turned out alright. Thank you for reading and reviews are very welcome :P xx


	86. The Coulson's Go To Disney World Pt 2

**Hey guys! Let me tell you something, writing this chapter was so hard! I watched so many videos of families at Disney and looked at every website known to man so if you have any questions about Disney World, I'm your girl lol. It was so difficult describing all the rides through a child's eyes, so I didn't get to include everything I wanted to. I hope you guys still like it though!**

 **Thanks for reading! xx**

* * *

Skye happily skipped between her mom and dad as they moved from Fairytale Hall and crossed the large sidewalk and headed towards the Seven Dwarf's Mine Train. Now that she had met Rapunzel, Skye was ready to go on some rides.

As they walked up to the ride, Skye gaped at the large mountain and the rickety railway track that looped around it. She grinned when she heard the sound of excited screaming get louder and louder until she saw a group of people sitting in the mine cart, arms raised, zoom by them on the railway track and disappear into a cave in the mountain. She tugged on her mom and dad's hands and practically pulled them into the entrance of the ride.

They veered into the line for people with FastPasses and quickly made their way to the front of the line for the ride.

She pulled on her mom's hand and smiled up at her, "Is this ride scary?"

"I don't think so baby," Her mom said while reaching down to push Skye's bangs out of her eyes, "It's just fast."

Skye hopped on her toes and her smile widened. She was _so_ ready to go on this ride. She loved how exhilarating roller coasters were and how they made her heart speed up in the best way possible.

She jumped around and weaved between her parents as they waited in line. Luckily, the park wasn't too busy yet and they only had to wait a couple of minutes before they were being ushered onto the ride. Skye bolted across the bench and sat down and her dad barely had time to slide in next to her before she was pulling down the safety bar over their laps. He grunted as the bar slammed into the top of their thighs and clicked into place.

"Excited Skye?" Her dad asked.

She nodded distractedly as one of the workers walked by and tugged on their safety bar to make sure that it was secure. Once the worker checked over everyone, he turned around and gave a thumbs up to someone else before turning back around and telling everyone to have fun.

Skye scooted over a little so that she was closer to her dad and he chuckled and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "Here we go!"

As soon as her dad said that, the ride started moving. It started slow, they went around a few curves, and then they were slowly moving up a hill. Skye used one hand to hold tightly to the safety bar and the other hand to clutch her dad's hand and then they were dropping quickly and going around curves and Skye was screaming and laughing at her dad when she heard him shriek loudly. They slowed down as they moved into the mountain and Skye caught her breath and laughed at the dwarfs. Some were standing in buckets of jewels while other were mining, and her dad pointed to Sleepy, who was dozing off in a wheelbarrow full of brightly colored gemstones.

As they moved through the mine, the Hi-Ho song started to play and Skye giggled when she heard her dad singing loudly and off-key. Suddenly they were dropping down and curving around the mountainside quickly and her dad screamed, mid-lyric, which made Skye laugh loudly.

Too soon, they were going around the last curve of the ride and Skye let out a disappointed groan when the ride stopped. It was over so quickly!

The safety bar lifted and Skye got off of the ride before she grabbed onto her dad's hand and jumped around, "That was so much fun! Let's go again!"

Her family chuckled and they followed the crowd out of the ride and back into daylight. Nattie gently tugged on her shirt to get her attention, "Why don't we ride some other rides first and if we have time, we can ride this one again."

"Yeah sweetheart, why don't we go check out The Little Mermaid ride," Her dad said.

Skye's eyes widened slightly and nodded enthusiastically, "Let's go on Ariel's ride!"

Her dad pulled out the park's map and quickly found where the ride was and then Nattie was leading them towards Ariel's ride with Skye right behind her.

* * *

Skye exited Ariel's ride happily, chattering nonstop about how amazing it had been. They had sat in large seashells and it had looked like they were actually underwater. The ride had had all of the characters and played all of the songs and Skye had felt like she was actually in the movie with Ariel.

"That was so cool!"

Her sibling's hummed in agreement and her mom asked, "What was your favorite part?"

Skye tapped a finger on her lips and thought about it for a moment, "When they sang Under the Sea!"

Her mom nodded, "That was mine too."

"Now what're we gonna do?" Skye questioned.

Her dad pulled out the map and studied, "Well, do you wanna go see Ariel? She's right around the corner."

Skye tried to channel her mom and attempted to raise a disbelieving eyebrow. Did her dad even need to ask her that? Of _course_ she wanted to meet Ariel. Her eyebrow didn't really cooperate but her point was made. Trip laughed and nudged her dad, "That was a dumb question."

Her dad rolled his eyes and led them to Ariel's Grotto and Skye skipped happily through the queue and into the FastPass line, which only had a couple people in front of them.

"What're you gonna say to Ariel, Skye?" Her mom asked.

Skye walked in quick circles around her mom and said, "I'm gonna ask her why she didn't wanna be a mermaid anymore. I would _love_ to be a mermaid!"

"She wanted legs so that she could learn more about the human world and meet Prince Eric, remember?" Her dad said.

Skye huffed and stopped circling her mom so that she could look her dad in the eye when she said, "Nattie says that you shouldn't have to change who you are for someone you like."

Her dad stuttered for a moment and Skye grinned when her sister gave her a thumbs up.

"You're absolutely right Skye, but Ariel was always fascinated by humans, remember? She didn't just want legs so she could get a boyfriend, she wanted to explore and learn more about how humans lived. She went after what she wanted even though everyone else was telling her not to." Her mom said smoothly.

Skye pondered that and finally nodded in agreement, satisfied with her mom's explanation.

They moved up in the line until they were next and Skye could see Ariel sitting in a giant seashell. The princess had a big flower in her long red hair and Skye gaped at her beautiful fin.

Before she knew it, she was walking up to Ariel, who was smiling at her. Skye didn't feel nervous like she had when she had met Rapunzel because she had already met two princesses and a queen. She was basically a professional at meeting royalty at this point.

"Hello angelfish, how're you today?" Ariel said, smiling brightly and patting the seat next to her.

Skye smiled back and sat down next to the princess, "I'm good! I just went on your ride and saw all your friends!"

"That's awesome! Who's your favorite?" Ariel wrapped an arm around her shoulders and Skye leaned into the her side.

"My favorite's Scuttle. He's so silly!"

Ariel tucked a strand of bright red hair behind her ear and smiled, "Scuttle is _very_ smart. He knows everything there is to know about humans!"

Skye giggled and shook her head, "Nuh uh! He didn't know what a fork was!"

Ariel contemplated that and tapped a finger against her lips, "Hm, I guess you're right. Maybe he was just confused though!"

Skye shrugged and reached out to gingerly touch Ariel's hair, "Your hair is the same color as my sister's. It's real pretty."

Ariel laughed in delight and pulled Skye closer to her side so that she could lean in and say, "Thank you! I found out that the humans use 'brushes' to comb through their hair, but I've learned that brushing through it with a 'fork,' as you say, keeps it nice and bouncy."

Skye giggled and thought that Ariel was silly.

Ariel leaned back and poked her tummy, "You should try it!"

"Okay," Skye said, knowing that she probably wasn't going to try combing through her hair with a fork. It was hard enough detangling it with an actual comb.

Ariel gave her a knowing look and pointed to her parents, "Let's take a picture!"

Skye straightened up, rested her head on Ariel's shoulder, and smiled real big.

"Say seaweed!" Ariel exclaimed."

"Seaweed!"

A bunch of flashes went off and once it was over, Skye had to blink a few times before her eyes would work right. After her eyes adjusted, she threw her arms around Ariel's waist and hugged her tightly.

The princess patted her on the back lightly before letting her go, "Bye! I hope to see you again soon!"

She hopped off the the seashell and waved at Ariel, "Bye!"

* * *

They had made it through most of the rides and events in Tomorrowland by the time they were all hungry for lunch. They had a reservation at the Be Our Guest restaurant, so they had to make their way back into Fantasyland.

Skye's feet were kind of starting to ache a little bit but she ignored it and then forgot about her aching feet completely when her mom led her into the the Beast's enchanted castle. Her eyes widened as she took everything in.

One whole wall was dedicated to a large mosaic that looked like the stained glass window in Beauty and the Beast and it showed Belle and the Beast dancing together. There was a huge, golden chandelier above her and Skye stared at it in awe. Her mom had to tug on her hand to get her to keep moving on to the foyer, where they stopped at a kiosk and ordered their food. Skye was too busy admiring the decorative tapestry on the wall to focus on the menu, so she let her mom order for her and then she was tugged away into one of the ballrooms where they were supposed to eat.

"Which ballroom do you want to eat in?" Her dad asked.

Before Skye could speak up, Trip excitedly said, "The West Wing!"

Nattie raised an eyebrow at him and he shrugged, "What? I wanna see what it's like."

Skye nodded in agreement and their parents led them to the West Wing, which was much dimmer than the Grand Ballroom and the Rose Garden. They grabbed a table and while they waited for their food to arrive, Skye looked around.

On one wall was the painting of the prince that was slashed with claw marks. Skye stared at it for a while, noting how it looked exactly like the one from the movie, before her attention was captured by the floating rose that was inside a glass container and sitting on a small table by a large balcony. The rose looked like it was sparkling and suspended in midair and she was enamored with it. She sucked in a breath when one of the petals on the rose gently fell onto the table. She tugged on her mom's sleeve and pointed at it.

"Mommy, it's just like the movie!"

Her mom looked at the rose and made an appreciative sound, "Wow, it really is."

Skye turned back around and got comfortable in her seat. Her family seemed to be doing the same and everyone seemed happy to be sitting down for a little while.

"Is everyone having a good time?" Her dad asked.

"Yes!" Skye squealed and her siblings wholeheartedly agreed with her.

Her dad chuckled and rested his head on his hand, "Good. We still have the other half of the park to explore."

Skye smiled broadly and wiggled around in her seat in excitement. She never wanted this day to end.

Her dad looked around the table, "What was everyone's favorite thing so far?" He pointed to Trip, "You first."

Her brother thought about it for a second before smiling, "Space Mountain. It was so cool."

Skye scrunched up her nose. Space Mountain had been too scary for Skye to go on and her mom had happily sat out with her while the rest of her family went on the rollercoaster. They had been told that the ride was pitch black and very scary so she wasn't too upset that she hadn't been on it.

Her dad pointed at Nattie and her sister immediately said, "Listening to Trip scream on Space Mountain."

Trip huffed indignantly and Natasha smirked as he protested, "I didn't scream Tasha."

Her sister raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? Then what was the high pitched noise that came out of you?"

"That wasn't me!"

"Trip, I was sitting right next to you."

Her brother waved her sister off and focused intently on the tablecloth. Skye giggled and her dad smiled before pointing at her, "My favorite part was meeting Rapunzel!"

Her mom wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "Somehow, I knew you were going to say that."

Her dad nodded and Skye shrugged unapologetically. Meeting Rapunzel was one of the best moments of her life, after being adopted and every other awesome memory with her family.

When her dad pointed at her mom, she said, "I enjoyed watching Skye meet Rapunzel."

Skye smiled up at her mom and giggled when she pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"Well my favorite part so far was racing you guys on the speedway in Tomorrowland, but I bet when we go on Splash Mountain, that'll be my new favorite moment," Her dad said.

Nattie leaned across the table to ask their dad about Splash Mountain and completely ignored Trip when he tried to defend his honor from Space Mountain. Her mom got into the conversation and pulled out the map so that they could figure out where Splash Mountain was so that they could go there after they ate. Skye rested her head on her hand and watched her family talk animatedly and she couldn't believe that they were actually there, eating in the Beast's enchanted castle at Disney World. She smiled to herself and focused on capturing this moment in her memory forever before joining in on the conversation by teasing Trip, much to Nattie's delight.

* * *

"Mommy? Is this ride scary?"

"No baby, it's just a little dark."

Skye held her mom's hand tightly as they all walked towards their seats. Skye was _not_ happy to learn that she couldn't sit with her mom because the seats were singular and in a long row. Trip sat in the front, then Natasha, then her, then her mom, and finally her dad. Once she was all settled into her seat, she reached back and pulled her mom's hand over her seat so that she could hold her hand.

She had watched people go on this ride and everyone seemed to walk away soaked with water, so Skye was expecting that, and she was also ready for the large drop at the end, where everyone screamed and the people watching on the sidewalk got splashed. Needless to say, she was ready to be blown away by this awesome water ride, so it was a little perplexing when they ride started and they kept going up and up rather than splashing down.

After three big hills and minimal drops, Skye turned around in her seat and gave her mom an unimpressed look, "I thought there were gonna be more drops."

Her mom squeezed her hand, "There will be, just be patient."

Skye turned back around just in time to admire the large Pirates of the Caribbean ship in the distance.

They cruised around a slow curve and Trip pointed in front of them excitedly, pointing out the big sudden drop they were heading for. Skye felt her initial excitement return and she gripped her mom's hand as they made their way closer until they made it and it felt like they were falling for a good few seconds. Skye screamed loudly and it felt like her tummy was inside her throat before cold water splashed on her face and arms and she was giggling madly. She straightened up in her seat when she heard Trip laughing loudly and saw that his whole shirt was wet and he was wiping water out of his eyes.

Skye didn't really have time to register how surprisingly fun it was to feel like you were falling because they were then moving inside the mountain. Little animals were talking to them and peppy music was playing as they moved up and up until it turned pitch black and Skye could see a light at the end of the tunnel where she assumed the big drop was.

The voices around them told them to turn back and the music got spookier and Skye's heartbeat got faster and faster until they reached the top of the hill and suddenly the floor dropped out from underneath them. Skye couldn't even scream, the wind rushing past her made it difficult to, and they zoomed downwards into jets of water. She squealed when cold water splashed her and then they were leveled out and it was over.

Skye shivered a little bit, the water was cold and _everywhere_ , and finally let go of her mom's hand. She felt a little bad when she realized how tight of a grip she had had on it but her mom didn't complain.

In front of her, Trip and Nattie were talking about how awesome that had been, relaying every moment like the both of them hadn't just experienced it together, and Skye grinned when she saw that the both of them were absolutely drenched with water.

She twisted around in her seat to see that her parents had gotten wet too and were grinning at her.

Her dad swiped a hand over his face to try to wipe away some of the water and said, "Yep, that's definitely my favorite ride. Did you like it Skye?"

She went to hop up in her seat but grunted when the safety harness wouldn't let her. Instead, she waved her arms around excitedly and launched into a detailed description of how awesome every single second had been.

* * *

 _(Mel's POV for this section)_

She and Phil had been expecting it, they had even planned on it and had tried to guess what time it would happen (she had been right of course) but still, it wasn't fun when Skye had her little tantrum.

It wasn't a surprise. The little girl had been walking for hours, it was hot out, and she was just overwhelmed by the constant stimulation of loud voices, bright colors, fun rides, and delicious smells. The neverending throng of people and screaming children probably didn't help much either.

They were moving from one ride to another when Skye stopped walking and tugged on her hand, refusing to move any further.

She stopped and kneeled in front of her, "What's wrong baby?"

The little girl shook her head and crossed her arms in front of her chest, "I don't wanna go anymore."

Melinda was a little confused. Was Skye talking about not wanting to go on the next ride or did she not want to go around the park anymore? She wasn't sure, so she tried to clarify, "What do you mean? Do you want go home?"

Skye eyes widened and filled with tears and Melinda sighed internally, knowing that she had just set Skye off. She wasn't surprised in the least when Skye started crying and shaking her head vigorously, so she turned around and told Phil and the kids that they were going to sit this ride out and that they could go on without them while they waited and she guided Skye over to a bench.

The little girl was still crying hysterically, babbling about how she didn't want to go home and she didn't want to go anymore and Melinda was thoroughly confused as to what her daughter seemed to be throwing a fit over.

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, catching the eye of a father across the sidewalk dealing with a little boy who was throwing a tantrum just like Skye, and he gave her an understanding look before focusing back on his kid. She did the same and put a hand on Skye's shoulder and spoke confidently and with an authoritative voice, "Skye, I don't know what's wrong with you but this behavior is unacceptable. Are you going to tell me what's wrong like a big girl so that we can fix it and move on or are we going to have to sit here and miss out on all the fun rides while you throw a fit?"

Skye hiccuped and rubbed her eyes and Melinda felt relief when she realized that her daughter's tears were slowing down. Skye took in a big, shuddering breath before kicking her legs sheepishly in front of her and mumbling, "I don't wanna _go_ anymore."

Melinda felt her eye twitch and she took a calming breath before she asked, "I know Skye but what does that _mean_?"

The little girl lifted one foot into her lap and rubbed it, "I don't wanna walk anymore Mommy, my feet hurt a lot and 'm thirsty."

Melinda wondered why Skye hadn't just said that in the first place, things would have been a lot easier that way, but she also felt a little guilty for not realizing that Skye was reaching her threshold and for not being on top of her child's needs.

She pulled a water bottle out of her bag and handed it to Skye before saying, "Skye, look at me."

The little girl took a huge gulp of water before focusing on her.

"Next time, just tell us when you need something, okay? Then we can help you and we can avoid all of this." She waved her arms around, indicating the situation they were in.

Skye nodded and rubbed her eyes before taking another drink of water and saying, "Okay, 'm sorry."

Melinda let out a huge breath and nodded, "I forgive you, just remember to speak up next time."

Her daughter nodded again and sipped greedily from the water bottle. Mel figured that since they probably had about forty-five minutes until Phil and the kids came back, she might as well take stock of how Skye was doing.

As Skye continued to drink her water, Melinda pulled a granola bar out of her backpack and handed it to the little girl so she had a snack to munch on. Skye accepted it happily and surprised her when she ate the whole thing in three large bites. Mel blinked, pulled out a bag full of grapes, and wordlessly handed them to Skye before reaching into her backpack and pulling out some baby wipes. She used one of the wipes to clean the sweat and dirt off of Skye's face as Skye happily ate her grapes and hummed along to the cheerful music coming from the hidden speakers around the park. You would have never known that just a minute ago, the little girl was having a full-blown meltdown.

Once Skye was all clean, Melinda pulled the little girl closer to her and re-did her ponytail so all of the hair was off of Skye's neck. Once she was reasonably certain that Skye was comfortable, hydrated, and fed, they both took advantage of their free time to recharge and take a little rest.

Skye leaned against her and by the time Phil, Tasha, and Trip found them, Skye's eyes had been closed for twenty minutes for a power nap.

She gently shook Skye awake and grinned a little when the little girl whined for a moment before opening her eyes. Skye looked much better, refreshed and cheerful, and Melinda felt relieved that the crisis was averted and everyone was happy again.

"Ready to go?"

Skye nodded and handed her the water bottle so that she could put it back in her bag.

The rest of their family reached them and Phil checked the time on his phone, "Want to go watch the parade on Main Street? It's a little early but we can go find a good spot to watch."

Skye nodded enthusiastically and hopped off of the bench. Mel didn't miss how her daughter was walking a little stiffly but before she could say anything, Skye was tugging on Phil's arm until he crouched down so that she could climb onto his back.

Once Skye was perched on Phil's back, Mel stood up and handed Trip the map so that he could figure out how they were supposed to get to Main Street. Phil gave her a questioning look and she knew he was making sure that everything was fine and that they didn't have to give Skye a time-out or something, so she gave him a quick thumbs up and focused on Trip and Tasha so that she could ask them how the ride was.

* * *

Skye was having trouble keeping her eyes open as they stood on a bridge looking towards Cinderella's castle, waiting for the fireworks to go off.

It was dark out and without the sun blaring down on them, the air was much cooler and there were less people meandering around the park. Skye sleepily leaned her head against her mom's chest and whined a little when her mom tried to tickle her sides to keep her awake, "C'mon sleepyhead, the fireworks will go off any minute."

Skye blinked blearily and forced herself to sit up straight and move away from her mom's warm embrace so that she could stay awake. Their day had been full of fun and Skye had made so many awesome memories with her family at Disney World and she never, ever wanted to leave. Unfortunately though, they had to leave at some point, and they were waiting until after the Wishes Nighttime Spectacular to do so.

Cinderella's castle was lit up and suddenly dramatic music started to play and the castle turned blue and looked like it was sparkling.

Skye gasped and leaned forward in her mom's arms in an attempt to get closer.

A woman's regal voice said, "When stars are born, they posses a gift of two. One of them is this: they have the power to make a wish come true." A bright yellow firework shot across the sky and looked like a falling star.

More fireworks started going off as a chorus of voices sang When You Wish Upon A Star and all of the Disney character's made wishes, like Ariel wishing to be a part of our world and Peter Pan wishing to never grow up.

Skye was enamored with the firework display and every time the castle changed colors, she oohed and pointed excitedly to make sure that the rest of her family saw.

Skye felt goosebumps raise up on her arms when, near the end of the show, a big firework shot up directly above the castle and glitter rained down onto the castle, making the whole thing shimmer brightly. Then a bunch of fireworks went off at once, lighting up the night sky and making everything glow red, and Skye gaped in awe.

It was so beautiful and enchanting that Skye couldn't help but be sad when it was over.

Everyone clapped and cheered and started dispersing. She turned back to her family to find that they were watching her, so she smiled and started waving her hands around excitedly while shouting, "That was so awesome! That was the coolest thing _ever_!"

Her brother and sister laughed and her mom hugged her close and murmured, "I'm glad you liked it."

Skye hugged her mom back, "It… it was so cool! And the colors! And-and everything was so bright!" Skye was so happy and overwhelmed that she couldn't really complete a whole, detailed sentence, so she just hoped her mom would understand what she was saying.

Her mom laughed lightly and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

Her dad walked over and plucked her out of her mom's arms, "Wasn't that the best thing ever?"

"It was _so cool_ Daddy," She said while she rested her head on his shoulder.

She could still feel her heart beating faster than it normally did after that awesome show, but her sleepiness was starting to come back. Her eyes got heavier and she desperately tried to stay awake as her family started to make their way out of the park.

She didn't last very long, but she kept her eyes focused on Cinderella's castle so that it was the last thing she saw before she fell asleep.

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This chapter was a _challenge_ you guys, and I think it definitely shows. I hope you guys like it anyways :) Reviews are very appreciated and always motivating! xx :P


	87. Skye's Good At Sneak Attacks

**Hey guys! This semester is killing me but I had an hour free today and I just really really wanted to write something cute. Thanks for reading! xx**

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Skye peered into the living room as she hid safely behind the kitchen counter. Her lips twitched up into a tiny smile as her eyes locked onto her target.

Slowly, she tiptoed out from behind the counter and knelt down so that she could crawl for cover behind the bookshelf in the living room. She squished herself close to the wall when she heard movement, the slight rustling of clothes and a deep sigh, and she held her breath until it got quiet again.

Biting her lip, Skye fought back a smile and counted to three in her head before rushing out from her hiding spot. She stopped short when she found the living room empty. Her eyebrows shot up and she looked around wildly before her dad jumped out from behind the couch. She screamed in surprise and then dissolved into giggles when he lunged for her and tickled her sides "Gotcha!"

Her dad fell to the ground and pulled her down on top of him, still tickling her mercilessly. Skye tried to wiggle away and fought to catch her breath as her dad's fingers dug into her sides and tummy. In between giggles, she managed to say, "How'd you know?"

Her dad finally stopped tickling her and playfully tugged on the end of one her pigtails, "I'm actually a super spy."

Skye shifted so that she was lying more comfortably on top of her dad and gave him a disbelieving look. She would _know_ if her dad was a super spy, he would have to wear super fancy suits to be a spy but her dad just wore Captain America scrubs to work instead.

Her dad sat up a little and let out a dramatic sigh, "Fine! You got me. I saw your shadow when you were behind the bookshelf."

Skye looked up at the lights and gave them a look of betrayal before collapsing dejectedly onto her dad's chest. She was never any good at surprising her family members. They always seemed to know when she was trying to be sneaky and she had made it her mission to try and become sneakier.

Her mission had been unsuccessful so far.

Her dad gave her a comforting pat on the back before sitting up. She slid down into his lap and looked up at him, "Daddy, why am I so bad at being sneaky?"

"You're not bad at it sweetheart, you just need more practice."

Skye sighed and her shoulders slumped in defeat.

Her dad nudged her and gave her a conspiratorial look, "You know what? Your mom's upstairs and should be out of the shower by now."

He wiggled his eyebrows and dramatically pointed to the staircase with his chin and Skye's eyes lit up as she took the hint. She scrambled out of her dad's lap and was up the stairs in no time.

Once she made it to the top of the stairs, she stopped suddenly and slowly looked down the hallway to make sure the coast was clear. She smiled in delight when she found that it was and, as quietly as she could, she started to make her way down the hallway to where her parents' bedroom door was partially open.

When she _finally_ made it to the door, she sank down to her knees and poked her head into the room to see where her mom was.

Lucky for her, her mom was facing away from her as she sat on her bed and brushed through her damp hair. Skye smiled mischievously and crawled into the room, making sure that her hands and knees didn't make any noises when they hit the floor.

It felt like it took forever before Skye was safely hidden behind the side of the bed her mom was not sitting on. She held her breath and popped up quickly so that she could see if her mom was still there and wasn't aware of her presence.

She popped her head up quickly but it was probably too quick because when she was safely hidden again, she realized that everything had been a blur and she couldn't remember if her mom was still busy brushing her hair or not.

Rolling her eyes at herself, Skye popped her head up again, much slower this time, and was happy to find that even though her mom was now putting lotion on her arms and legs, she was still facing away from her and had no idea about the sneak-attack that was coming her way.

This time, instead of overthinking it, Skye decided that this attack would be fast and sudden.

After taking a deep breath, Skye jumped up and launched herself onto the bed and towards her mom, and she was delighted to find that her mom was completely unaware of her presence until a second later when she turned and caught Skye before she could crash into her.

Her mom chuckled and Skye tried to catch her breath as her mom cradled her to her chest.

She brushed her hair out of her face and grinned, "Mommy, did I scare you?"

"You sure did baby." Skye almost didn't catch her mom's slight hesitation but she _did_ and her grin turned into a pout when she realized her mom had known she was there.

She crossed her arms sullenly and indignantly said, "How'd you know?!"

Her mom chuckled again and gave her an amused look, "Well… maybe next time, don't scream out a war cry when you're about to attack someone."

Skye's eyebrows shot up in surprise. She didn't even remember screaming but she might have just been caught up in the moment.

Her mom squeezed her into a quick hug before gently setting her on the ground and nudging her towards the door, "Go wash your hands and meet me in the kitchen. If you help me with dinner tonight, we can make cookies for dessert."

Skye squealed happily and took off down the hallway. She would just keep practicing and eventually she would be able to successfully sneak up on her family.

* * *

Leave me your thoughts! How's everyone doing? Is school killing anyone else? Thanks for reading guys! xx


	88. Skye Goes to Trip's Game

**Heyyooo! A guest, Me, wanted to see the family go to one of Trip's sporting events so here it is! Thanks for reading! xx (I know nothing about basketball I'm so sorry lol)**

* * *

Skye gripped her dad's hand tightly as they pushed through the crowded hallway and into the high school gym. Everyone was wearing the local high school colors of dark blue and black and the school mascot, Lenny the Lion, was jumping around in the corner.

The school was very proud of its basketball team and Skye was excited for the first game of the season because she would finally be able to watch Trip play in a real game, rather than at the park with his friends. She was decked out in a dark blue shirt with a cartoon version of Lenny on the front of it and Nattie had helpfully smeared two black stripes across her cheeks. She was carrying a handmade sign and she clutched it to her chest as four loud teenagers brushed past her.

Her dad squeezed her hand and gave her an excited smile, "Let's go find a seat before they're all taken."

Skye nodded and let her dad lead her towards the bleachers. She didn't even bother trying to help her mom and dad find seats, she was way too short to see above the crowd of people blocking her view, so she let her parents tug her through the tightly packed crowd of people.

Luckily, they were saved from having to find seats when they heard their names being called. Skye smiled happily and pointed to where Trip and Nattie's friends were all sitting together, waving wildly and dramatically at them. Skye slipped away from her dad, weaved through the crowd, and sprinted up the bleachers until she was slightly out of breath and standing beside her siblings' friends.

"Hey Skye!" Hunter and Clint shouted loudly and Bobbi smacked them both lightly on the arm.

She waved at everybody and Clint and Hunter turned their attention back to a heated conversation between them and Bucky. She could see that Bucky was holding a handmade sign with Steve's name on it and Bobbi had a big sign with Steve, Mack, and Trip's numbers on it.

Skye set her sign down before haphazardly climbing onto Bobbi's lap, "Bobbi! Look! Mommy gave me this shirt and Nattie did the little stripes on my face!"

Bobbi looked her over and grinned, "You look very spirited Skye. Are you excited to watch Trip?"

She nodded enthusiastically and giggled when Nattie gracefully slid into the seat next to them and tugged on Clint's hoodie until he fell out of his seat and landed on his butt by their feet. He threw her a dirty look and looked like he was about to say something before he glanced at her and hesitated before grumbling, "You're lucky that little ears are around."

Nattie chuckled and Skye sat up in Bobbi's lap, "Why?"

Clint scratched his forehead and before he could answer, Skye's attention was diverted as her mom and dad sat down in the seats behind them.

Her dad pulled some money out of his pocket and tapped Nattie on the shoulder, "Will you go grab me some popcorn from the concession stand? I don't know if I'd make it through the crowd again."

Nattie nodded and stood up and Skye jumped up with her, "Can I have popcorn too?"

Her dad nodded and handed Nattie some more bills. Skye happily hopped up and down and began to tug her sister down the bleachers before their mom's voice stopped them, "No candy, okay Skye? Just popcorn."

Skye nodded hastily and kept pulling on her sister's sleeves. Her mom sighed and gave Nattie a look, "I mean it Natasha, no candy for her. She's had more than enough sugar for today."

"You got it mom," Nattie said and then let Skye drag her away and through the crowd.

They made it to the concession stand and Skye stuck by her sister's side until they made it to the front of the line.

"What can I get ya?" The frenzied-looking teenager asked.

Skye peered over the counter and happily said, "Two popcorns and M&M's please!"

The teen nodded and was about to turn away to complete their order but Nattie stopped him, "No M&M's."

Skye pouted, "Please Nattie?"

"Mom said no candy."

Skye stuck her lower lip out and crossed her arms over her chest. Nattie sighed heavily, bent down, and conspiratorially whispered, "But she didn't say no soda. What do you want?"

Her eyes lit up and she wrapped an arm around her sister's leg and excitedly chanted, "Orange soda! Orange soda!"

The teen looked irritated that it was taking them so long to order and Nattie raised an eyebrow at him and said, "Two popcorns and a small orange soda please."

"Thanks Nattie," Skye pushed her face into her sister's tummy and hugged her leg tightly.

She felt Nattie run her fingers through her ponytail and mumble, "No problem. Are you excited about Trip's game?"

Skye nodded and propped her chin onto her sister's hip so that she could look up at her, "I don't really know anything about basketball though."

Natasha shrugged and gently tugged on her ponytail, "That's okay, it's still fun to watch Trip. Just clap when everyone else claps."

"Okay." Unlike football and soccer, Skye just couldn't understand the rules of basketball. Her brother and his friends had tried to explain it to her over and over but it just wouldn't stick in her mind. She was sure her sister was right though and that it would still be fun to just watch Trip run around and stuff. Either way, she got popcorn _and_ soda out of it, so the game was already off to a great start.

They collected their food and Skye happily sipped from the small cup full of orange soda as Nattie led her back to their group. When they climbed up the bleachers and sat back in their seats, their mom gave them a disapproving look.

Nattie handed their dad his popcorn and held her hands up defensively, "I didn't get her any candy."

* * *

"Everybody please put your hands together and help me welcome our home team!"

Upbeat music started playing and the crowd went crazy as their team ran out of the locker room and onto the basketball court.

Skye hopped up and down and yelled along with everybody else as her mom reached out to make sure she didn't accidentally fall down the bleachers. She craned her neck and managed to spot Trip on the court, he was warming up with the rest of his team, and she raised her sign up and cheered even louder.

"Look! There's Trip!" She let go of one side of her sign so that she could point to her brother before yelling, "Hi Trip!"

Somehow, Trip managed to hear her and turned and waved at them. She waved back excitedly before holding her sign back up so that her brother could see it.

Trip grinned when he read her sign, waved one more time, and went back to warming up with the rest of his teammates. Everyone else was starting to calm down a little, so Skye waited for Bobbi to sit back down so that she could climb onto her lap again.

The announcer introduced the teams, played the national anthem, and then the game started.

* * *

Skye was quickly realizing that basketball games were much more intense than she thought they would be. The crowd was going crazy, with both sides cheering loudly, and parents were yelling at the referees when they made a decision they didn't agree with. She was happy that her mom and dad weren't yelling at the referees, it seemed silly and she thought that it would probably embarrass Trip to have their mom and dad arguing with an official in front of the whole school. Instead, her mom and dad were, unsurprisingly, calm and collected the whole time. They clapped and cheered when necessary and offered words of encouragement when Trip needed it.

Nattie and the rest of their friends, on the other hand, were very vocal and rowdy. Skye wouldn't have expected anything else and it was entertaining to watch them come up with chants or wave their signs around.

Clint and Hunter were stomping their feet on the bleachers and Bobbi and Nattie were cheering loudly as Mack dribbled the ball down the court before passing it to Steve. Trip was off to the side a bit, waving his arms in the air and shouting something to Steve. Steve seemed to notice him and went to pass the ball to him when a player from the other team came up and pushed Trip out of the way. Trip fell to the ground, the referee blew his whistle, and the audience collectively gasped and started booing.

Outraged that someone would push her brother to the ground, Skye climbed onto her seat and shouted, "Don't push my brother, you meany-head!"

Her voice carried much further than she thought it would and the people around her started chuckling and turning towards her. Her cheeks heated up and she shrunk away from the sudden attention.

Mack pulled Trip back to his feet and he turned towards her and gave her a thumbs up so that she knew he was okay. She let out a relieved breath before she felt Nattie lift her off of the bleachers and onto her lap. Her sister patted her knee and seriously said, "Good looking out Skye."

Skye nodded and crossed her arms, "It isn't nice to push people."

Clint laughed and gave her a high five and the game continued on.

* * *

Skye never really caught onto what was going on during the game, but she could honestly say that it was still very fun.

Trip's team ended up winning by a lot and as the teams shook each other's hands and disappeared back into the locker rooms, Skye twisted around and spoke to her parents, "Trip did really good, didn't he?"

Her mom was gathering all of their things so her dad answered her, "He always does good. Did you have a fun time?"

Skye nodded happily and stood up so that she could help everyone pick up their trash and wait for Trip to come out of the locker room.

By the time they made their way down the bleachers and threw their trash away, almost everyone except the players' families had wandered outside and Skye was nestled in her dad's arms, her homemade sign dangling from one hand, with her head resting on his shoulder. The excitement of the game was catching up to her and she felt drained.

After a few moments, she heard Clint say, "Hey, hey, here they come! The best athletes this place has to offer!"

Skye looked over in time to see Steve, Trip, and Mack flex their muscles and make silly faces. She smiled widely and wriggled around until her dad set her down and held her sign for her so that she could run over to her brother.

"Trip! You did so good!" She yelled as she jumped at her brother. He caught her and twirled her around before setting her on his shoulders and holding his hand out so she could give him a high five, "Thanks kiddo, I appreciate all the support."

Skye gently tapped the top of his head and grinned, "Did you hear me cheering?"

Her brother nodded and Skye grabbed onto his jersey so that she didn't fall off his shoulders. "Oh I heard you alright," he said and started chuckling, "Thanks for sticking up for me when that meany-head knocked me over."

Skye puffed out her chest proudly, "Don't worry, I've got your back."

Her brother laughed and patted her shin before leaning in to give their mom and dad hugs. Skye watched from her brother's shoulder as he greeted all his friends and they relived the best moments from the game. After a few moments, they started to make their way back to their cars and Skye's eyes started to feel heavy and she began swaying slightly on Trip's shoulders.

"You better grab the munchkin otherwise she's gonna topple over," Hunter pointed out.

Trip eased her off of his shoulders and held her against his chest so that she could rest her head on his shoulder. She poked his side and mumbled, "You did really, really good Trip. I wanna come to your next game, okay?"

"Of course you're coming to my next game, you're my little good luck charm. You _have_ to come," Trip said, before pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

She grinned and snuggled into her brother's chest, happy to know that she was Trip's good luck charm.

* * *

Thanks for reading you guys! I've been so AWOL oh my goosshhh but pls leave a review or something, it would make me very happy 3 You're the best! x


	89. The Coulson's Go Camping

**Hey guys! So I finally created an AO3 account (dorkyassassins) and have decided to revise You Can Trust Me and will be slowly updating that and moving the rest of my works over there. I'll still update here but I just wanted to let you know!**

 **In this chapter, the Coulson's go camping! x**

* * *

"This mosquito is determined to suck literally all of my blood," Trip whined loudly as he sprayed a humorously large amount of bug spray all over himself.

Skye giggled, coughing slightly as she inhaled some of the bug spray, and threw her sleeping back into the tent she was sharing with Nattie. Her brother was smacking himself on the arm and made a triumphant noise before he gave his hand a look of disgust and found something to wipe his hand off with.

Nattie rolled her eyes at their brother's theatrics and Skye giggled some more.

Her dad had been watching a lot of shows on the discovery channel lately and had dragged everyone for a short, one-night camping trip. Skye was excited, she'd never been camping before, and she was eager to get the full experience. Trip, on the other hand, seemed to be struggling a bit. It had taken him a long time to figure out how to set up his tent, especially because every time someone offered to help, he turned them down and said he could do it himself, and the bugs wouldn't leave him alone.

In an attempt to cheer him up, Skye pointed to the small fire pit her mom was constructing and smiled, "Look Trip! We can have s'mores later!"

Trip grumbled some more but gave her a halfhearted thumbs up and Skye counted that as a win.

"We can't have s'mores without a fire. Why don't you three go find us something to burn?" Her mom said, not even looking away from her project.

Skye nodded eagerly and followed her brother and sister a little ways away from their campsite. Nattie started gathering dry sticks and Skye followed her lead, picking up sticks from the ground and stacking them in her arms. She made a game out of it, counting the sticks as she went and seeing how many she could hold in her arms without dropping any.

Her arms were getting pretty full and heavy when she heard a shuffling sound to her right. She paused and glanced around uneasily, hoping that it wasn't anything scary, but smiled when she spotted a little brown bunny chewing on some leaves by a tree a few feet away from her.

The bunny's nose was twitching wildly and Skye watched as the bunny quickly ate the leaf, hopped forward, and started eating another one. Slowly, she took an experimental step towards it. The bunny's eyes focused on her and she stopped abruptly, not wanting to scare the little creature.

Its fur looked so soft and Skye really wanted to pet it but before she could figure out how to get close enough, Trip sneezed loudly and the bunny was out of sight in an instant.

"Trip!" She exclaimed.

She wistfully looked in the direction the bunny had disappeared off to and gave her brother an exasperated look before reaching down and balancing another stick onto the top of the pile in her arms.

* * *

"Mommy, am I doing it right?"

Skye dropped her flowers onto the ground and looked over to her mom, who also seemed like she was struggling to construct a flower crown. She giggled as her mom glared at the flowers, like she could scare them into doing what she wanted, before giving her a clueless look and motioning towards Nattie, "Maybe your sister can help you baby. She seems like she's got a good handle on how to do this."

She pouted a little when she looked over and saw that her sister already had a pretty crown of daisies adorning her head and was working on another one. She huffed and pointed to her sister, "How'd you do that Nattie?"

"Dad taught me the last time he dragged us camping. C'mere, I'll show you."

After carefully picking up her flowers, she shuffled closer to her sister and listened as Nattie explained how to properly arrange the flowers so that she could pick them up and put them on her head and it wouldn't fall apart.

She did exactly as her sister said and this time when she went to place her flower crown on her head, it stayed intact and she cheered triumphantly.

Standing up, she twirled around excitedly before running over to where her dad was lounging in a fold-up chair. She tugged on his hand, "Daddy, look!"

He set his book down and gave her a smile, "You look beautiful sweetheart. Are you a princess?"

Skye scrunched up her nose, "No! I'm president of the fairies Daddy, duh! Will you come play with me and the fairies?"

She pointed to a close-knit group of trees whose branches and roots were intertwined to create a small circle. She was convinced that that was where the fairies lived and she wanted to make some fairy friends.

Her dad stood up and dramatically motioned for her to lead the way to the fairies, "How'd you become president?"

"I wanted to be the president so then I decided that I was," She explained hastily as she pulled her dad into the circle of trees and she happily sighed as she pretended that they were transported into a magical world full of fairies.

"I don't think that's how presidential elections work," Her dad mumbled but Skye tugged on his hand and pointed to some mangled roots, "Look Daddy! There's a fairy over there."

Her dad peered over, "Oh wow, she's waving at you! She's happy to see her president."

Skye laughed and took an exaggerated bow and pretended that more fairies started to poke their heads out from behind branches and roots. She twirled around, pretending that the fairies were flying around her, and tried to jump as high as she could so that she could try to fly with them.

She huffed indignantly when she found she was unable to fly.

"I wanna fly with my fairy friends, like Tinkerbell!" She pouted.

Her dad crouched in front of her and wrapped an arm around her waist, "You just need a little pixie dust, remember?"

He sprinkled make believe pixie dust on her and said, "Now think happy thoughts."

Skye squeezed her eyes shut and thought about happy things, like ice cream for dinner and bedtime stories with her parents, and suddenly she was flying through the air.

Squealing, she opened her eyes and relaxed when she realized her dad was holding her tightly and zooming her around the small circle of trees.

They played with her new fairy friends until it got too dark to see.

* * *

"Trip?"

"Yeah Skye?"

"Your marshmallow is on fire," She pointed out helpfully.

Trip yanked his marshmallow out of the fire and blew on it. His marshmallow looked like it was charred and Skye scrunched her nose up at the burnt smell that drifted her way but her brother just waited for it to cool off a bit before shoving it into his mouth.

She shook her head before focusing back onto her mom.

"Is your marshmallow nice and brown?" Her mom asked.

She turned her marshmallow around, making sure it was nice and brown on all sides, before pulling it away from the fire and nodding proudly.

"Okay, I'll hold it for you while you break a graham cracker in half," Her mom took her skewer from her and Skye dug into a box and pulled out a graham cracker before cracking it in half. After that, she looked to her mom for further instruction.

"Now put some chocolate onto the graham cracker."

Skye did as she was told and broke apart a Hershey's bar before carefully arranging three pieces onto the bigger half of the graham cracker.

"And now, we put the marshmallow on top of the chocolate," Her mom said before lining up the marshmallow and squishing it between the chocolate and the other half of the graham cracker.

Skye watched, mesmerized, as the chocolate softened and the marshmallow puffed out like a balloon. Her mouth started watering and she eagerly reached for her s'more before taking a large bite out of it.

It was a warm, gooey mess and Skye didn't think she'd ever tasted anything better in her whole entire life. She hummed happily before taking another huge bite out of her yummy treat. She heard her mom and dad chuckle and quickly finished the last of her s'more.

Her fingers were sticky but she didn't mind at all and she was licking the chocolate and marshmallow from her lips when her mom sighed, "Maybe we should have made s'mores when we had access to a bath or running water." Her mom looked over to her dad, who reached into his backpack and handed her some baby wipes.

Skye let her mom wipe her face and hands before hopping up and down, "Can I make another one?"

"One more, okay?" Her dad said and handed her another marshmallow.

Skye cheered and made another s'more, this time sitting down and eating it much more slowly than her first one. She still got chocolate, marshmallow, and graham cracker crumbs all over herself and her dad was helping her get the sticky mess off of her face when something caught her eye.

She stood up quickly, almost knocking her dad over by accident, and pointed excitedly, "Fireflies!"

She jogged a couple feet away from their campsite and chased after the fireflies, shouting for her siblings to come and join her.

* * *

"Goodnight Skye, G'night Tasha," Their mom and dad poked their heads into her and Nattie's tent and Skye leaned forward and hugged them both before saying goodnight.

She shuffled back and snuggled into her sleeping bag as Nattie did the same. Once they were both settled, Nattie looked over to her and raised an eyebrow, "Remember what we talked about earlier?"

Skye nodded, proud of herself for remembering their earlier conversation.

"Tell me please."

Skye grinned and stated, "You said, 'Dad's already forcing me to sleep outside on the ground when we have perfectly good beds and a house, please don't wake me up at an ungodly hour, I'm begging you.'"

Nattie's looked surprised, "Wow, you really did remember everything. Are we still on the same page about that?"

Skye nodded again and said, "I'll let you sleep in, don't worry Nattie."

Her sister gave her a smile and said, "Thanks маленькая звезда, I love you. G'night."

Skye mumbled out a goodnight and her sister switched the flashlight off, bathing their small tent in darkness.

Sighing, Skye rolled onto her side and shut her eyes, hoping to fall asleep quickly.

Unfortunately, her body didn't want to cooperate. She was unable to fall asleep and now that everything had wound down and was quiet, she was acutely aware of the sound of the wind and the trees rustling right outside their tent.

She squeezed her eyes shut tighter and told herself to go to sleep but then a twig snapped and Skye shot up, "Nattie, I'm scared."

The wind blew loudly outside their tent and Skye hastily slipped out of her sleeping bag and squeezed into her sister's, who grunted as Skye accidently elbowed her in the cheek. It was a tight fit but Skye felt better when she was pressed close against her sister's side.

Nattie wrapped an arm around her waist and whispered, "Don't worry, your fairy friends will keep you safe."

Skye nodded, confident in her fairy friends' ability to keep her safe, and shut her eyes again. This time, she fell asleep quickly.

True to her word, when Skye woke up bright and early, she carefully detached herself from Nattie's arms and quietly left their tent so that her sister could sleep in. The sun was just starting to rise so the light was soft around their campsite. Her dad was already awake and seemed to be cutting up a watermelon for breakfast.

Her dad smiled at her and waved her over. Once she was standing next to him, she snagged some watermelon before giving him a hug and forcing her way onto his lap.

He tickled her sides and she giggled and squirmed before he stopped and whispered, "Once everyone starts waking up, we should start to pack up. No rush, but we should be heading back home."

Skye grunted noncommittally, not too happy that they were going to leave.

"Did you have fun camping?" Her dad asked as he reached around her for some watermelon.

"I _love_ it!" She stated happily, "Can we go camping again sometime?"

Her dad chuckled, "I'm sure we can make that happen."

Satisfied, Skye leaned back into her dad and contently ate some more watermelon as they watched the sun rise.

* * *

Thank you for reading and leave me your thoughts! Also, if you want to read my revised version of You Can Trust Me, I just posted the first few chapters on AO3 :)


	90. Skye Loves Wonder Woman

**If you can't tell by this one-shot, I'm slightly obsessed with the new Wonder Woman movie. Thanks for reading! x**

* * *

"Please Mommy! Please! I'll be good and won't distract anyone! I just wanna wear 'em."

Melinda was having a very difficult time saying no to her daughter. Skye had been _obsessed_ with Wonder Woman lately, they had watched all of the new trailers and Skye had managed to convince them to see the movie at the earliest showing time on Thursday night, and she had recently been given a little Wonder Woman costume by Bobbi. The little girl had been wearing it nonstop throughout the weekend but now that it was Monday and time for school, she wouldn't take it off.

Skye looked adorable in her Amazon getup but Mel didn't think the school would think it was appropriate attire. She sighed and shook her head, already preparing herself for the disappointed look her daughter was giving her.

"I'm sorry baby but you can't wear that to school. You need to wear normal clothes."

Skye's lower lip wobbled and Mel's heart ached along with it.

"But…" Her daughter looked down at her outfit helplessly, little fingers readjusting a gauntlet before tightly gripping her skirt.

"No 'buts'. Go change quick or you're going to be late to school," Melinda motioned for Skye to get a move on, they really were starting to run a bit behind, but Skye didn't seem to want to let it go so easily.

Her daughter widened her stance and put her hands on her hips in a move that mimicked Supergirl more than Wonder Woman, but Melinda recognized it and knew that this was going to be a difficult conversation.

Skye jutted out her chin, "What if I take off the dress and boots but still wear the headband and arm thingys?"

Melinda looked up towards the heavens, wondering when Skye had learned how to negotiate, but stood her ground, "You can put your costume back on when you get home from school but you need to go take it off now."

Skye's eyes started to tear up and Melinda sighed, not fully understanding why this was so important to her daughter.

She kneeled down and tapped the underside of Skye's chin so that she would look at her, "Why's this so important to you baby?"

Skye fidgeted with her fingers and said, "'Cause Wonder Woman is _powerful_ Mommy. You saw her, remember? She can punch through cars and fight a bunch of bad guys at once! No one can tell her what to do, not even the important boys!" Skye shuffled her feet and mumbled, "I wanna be powerful too and wearing this makes me feel like I am."

Melinda sat back on her heels and considered Skye.

Her daughter clearly idolized Wonder Woman and Melinda couldn't really blame her. As soon as she had seen the trailer for the new movie, she had been blown away and extremely happy that her little girl would have a strong superhero to look up to and relate to. If she was being honest, she had wished that she had had a movie like that come out when she was younger just so that she had a hero to cling to, like Skye was doing now.

She let out a big breath and relented, "You still have to take the dress and boots off but you can wear the headband. Take the gauntlets off too, you won't be able to write with those things on anyways."

Skye squealed and threw her arms around her neck in a tight hug, "Thank you Mommy!"

Smiling, she hugged Skye back while murmuring, "You're already powerful on your own but if wearing this makes you more confident then that's alright." She nudged Skye towards the staircase, "Now go change quickly, we're going to be late."

* * *

Skye giggled as she, Nattie, and Trip skipped their way down the street to the playground. Her Wonder Woman costume was a little big on her so it bounced up and down as she skipped but she made sure that she was careful so that she didn't accidentally trip.

Once they made it to the playground, Skye left her siblings by the swings and bolted off towards the giant castle-shaped play structure. She climbed up the rock wall and jumped around, pretending she had superpowers, before rushing down the slide and starting all over again.

She was about to go down the slide for the fifth time when someone pushed her out of the way and went down before her. She stumbled a bit before catching her footing, huffing angrily, and going down the slide quickly so that she could chase after the boy who had pushed her.

"Hey! That wasn't very nice!" She shouted after the running boy.

The boy stopped short and she had to skid to a stop to avoid running into him. He fixed her with a mean glare and crossed his arms, "You were in the way."

The boy was a little taller and older than her but she refused to stand down. Her Wonder Woman costume made her feel brave and she told herself to be strong like her new favorite superhero. So she put her hands on her hips and said, "You could've asked nicely! I would've moved outta your way."

He opened his mouth to respond and from the way he was glaring, Skye could tell that he wasn't going to be saying nice things, but before he could, another voice stopped him, "Just say you're sorry Lenny."

Skye and the boy, Lenny, looked over to see another girl standing next her wearing the exact same Wonder Woman costume the she was. The other girl looked to be the same age as Lenny and was fixing him with a determined stare.

Lenny rolled his eyes and quickly said, "I'm sorry or whatever," before running off.

Skye turned to the other girl, part of her happy that she had helped her out and the other part a little bit annoyed at her heroics being interrupted, "I coulda handled it myself."

The other girl gave her a toothy grin, "I know, I just wanted to help out. He's in my class and is kind of a meanie." The girl held out her hand and Skye reached out to shake it, "My name's Sammy but I'm trying to get my mom to call me Diana now. I like your costume. What's your name?"

"I'm Skye and I like your costume too," Skye regarded her new friend and the part of her that had been a little annoyed at her for interrupting quickly vanished. She recognized a fellow superhero when she saw one.

"Do you wanna play with me?" She asked.

Sammy nodded excitedly, grabbed her hand, and started tugging her towards the sandbox, "Let's go! Some of my friends are gonna be here soon and they can be Amazons and we can all pretend to be in a big battle!"

Skye chased after her new friend, giggling happily, excited about their new game.

* * *

As soon as the people in front of them finished paying for their tickets, Skye shot forward, placed her hands on the counter, and tried to peer up at the woman behind the glass, "We wanna see Wonder Woman!"

Her dad came up behind her, lifted her up and set her on his hip, and apologized to the woman, "I'm sorry, she's just a little excited."

The woman waved him off, "Don't worry about it, there've been a lot of excited little girls running around here all night. I like your costume, honey."

Skye blushed, fixed her headband and skirt, and thanked the woman.

Skye wriggled around so that her dad would set her down and was practically buzzing with excitement as they got their tickets, paid for popcorn, and found seats inside the theater. She couldn't believe that after all this time waiting, she was _finally_ going to be able to see Wonder Woman.

After getting comfortable in her seat between her mom and dad, she tugged on her mom's shirt sleeve and excitedly said, "I can't believe it's finally happening!"

Her mom chuckled and Nattie peered over at her and joked, "I can't tell. Are you excited or something Skye?"

Skye stuck her tongue out at her sister.

Nattie tossed some popcorn at her and Skye caught it, popped it into her mouth, and threw some back at her sister.

"Hey you two, no throwing popcorn," Her mom said sternly.

Skye shoved the popcorn that she was going to throw at her sister into her mouth instead and gave her mom a guilty look, "Sorry Mommy, I'm just super excited."

"I know baby," Her mom brushed her bangs out of her eyes before offering her her phone, "You want to play some games until the movie starts?"

Skye quickly took her mom up on her offer, happy to make time go faster until it was finally time for the movie to begin.

* * *

Skye walked out of the theater in a daze. She was sad that the movie was over but she was also so happy that she felt like she was going to burst.

Her dad took her hand and guided her towards the exit, "What'd you think Skye?"

"It was so awesome! Diana was so nice and cool and strong! She loved _everybody_!" She punctuated each word with a punch or kick, hardy able to stay still or slow down.

Her dad chuckled, "So you liked it?"

Skye huffed and poked his side, "Duh! When I grow up, I wanna be just like Diana."

* * *

Gimme your thoughts! About the one-shot and about Wonder Woman lol Also, I lost my list of prompts so if you had one in mind or sent one in and I haven't written it yet, shot me a message or leave it in a review please! Thank you! xx


	91. Skye Learns How to Swim

**Hey guys! MiriamCollins wanted to see Skye learn how to swim so here it is! This brought me back to a very intense day from my childhood when my dad taught me how to swim lol. I hope you like it! xx**

* * *

 **"** It's time you learn how to swim маленькая звезда."

Skye scrunched up her nose as she tried to shove her floaties onto her arms, ignoring the younger kids who were happily splashing around in the pool without floaties on, "But why?"

Her floaties were not cooperating with her and she huffed irritably before two strong arms easily pulled them on for her. Her dad affectionately tugged on the end of her ponytail while her sister collapsed onto a pool chair, "Because it's safer to know how to swim and it's fun. You'll see."

Setting her towel down by her sister, Skye glanced nervously towards the pool. It smelled strongly of chlorine and the blue water rippled around the kids swimming in it. Everyone looked like they were having a great time in the water but she gave the pool a dirty look so that it knew that she was not happy about having to learn how to swim in it.

"I don't really _need_ to know how to swim, right? I've never needed to know before and I'm just fine," She motioned to herself so that her sister knew that she _was_ just fine, even though she had no idea how to swim.

Nattie just glanced towards their dad and mom, who had finally caught up with them after hauling their bag full of supplies, before slipping her sunglasses onto her face and reclining back onto her chair.

Seeing that her sister wasn't going to give her a response, she turned to her mom, hoping to get at least one family member on her side, "Mommy, I don't really have to learn how to swim, right? I can just play in the shallow end!"

Her mom gave her a knowing grin and was about to say something when Trip ran by them, not caring that the lifeguard was giving him an angry look, laughing and yelling, "Last one in the water is a rotten egg!"

Nattie growled when Trip threw his shirt in her face and Skye giggled as she watched her sister leap up and charge after her brother, jumping into the pool and pulling him under the water, heedless of the lifeguard glaring at them.

"Swimming is fun baby and you're such a smart girl that I know you'll be swimming like a pro in no time." Her mom said as she helped Skye take her sandals off.

The compliment made her blush, she still wasn't quite used to being called smart so easily and honestly, but she still wasn't happy about this.

Her mom wiggled out of her her shorts and tank top, took her hand, and led her to the shallow end of the pool, by the steps that led into the water.

"It'll be fun, I promise. Your dad and I will be right here to help."

Skye gripped her mom's hand tightly, still not too keen on the idea of swimming. Her dad caught up to them, hopped into the pool, and held his arms out expectantly for her to jump into.

He wiggled his fingers at her and gave her an expectant look, "C'mon Skye, let's have some fun!"

She could see Trip trying to climb onto Nattie's shoulders from the corner of her eye and her dad's invitation _was_ very enticing, so when her mom nudged her towards the edge of the pool, Skye took a deep breath, made sure her floaties were on tightly, and jumped into the water.

* * *

"Want to see who can hold their breath the longest?" Her dad asked as he slowly twirled her around in the water.

Her floaties were now long forgotten and sitting in the sun next to Nattie and her fingers ached a little from the tight grip she had on her dad's arms and she was still apprehensive about the water, but she nodded anyways.

Her mom counted to three and Skye took a deep breath and held it for as long as she could. She was fine for a few seconds but once her lungs started to burn and she could see that her father was going to win, she sneakily reached down to tickle his sides, and grinned triumphantly when he huffed out a laugh and she won by default.

Her dad dropped her into her mom's arms so that he could retaliate and she laughed crazily as he tickled her sides. Once she caught her breath, her dad gave her a grin, "Even though you're a little cheater, you're pretty good at holding your breath." Her dad tilted his head and studied her, "How well can you kick your legs?"

Not quite sure whether to be insulted or not, she kicked her legs out in the water and gave her dad a haughty look.

"Kick 'em back and forth really quickly and that's half of learning how to swim right there," Her dad said as he motioned for her to give it a try.

Her mom held her out and Skye held her hands tightly and began to kick her legs.

At first, nothing happened and she sank a little and Skye felt frustrated at herself, but then her mom gave her an encouraging smile and said, "A little faster baby."

Skye picked up the pace and after a long moment, she felt her feet propel her upwards and she shouted in surprise, "I'm doing it!"

"Good job sweetheart! You're a natural!"

Confidence surging, she carefully let go of her mom's hands and furiously kicked her legs. For a few long moments, she was able to stay above the water, but then she started to slowly sink. She panicked, gulping in big breaths of air before her head sunk below the water, and then she was quickly pulled up.

Her mom held her close and soothingly rubbed her back and she spluttered and coughed.

Once she caught her breath, she pulled herself closer to her mom and further out of the water that had betrayed her.

"Good job kiddo!" Trip said as he floated next to them on his back.

"But… I sunk," She mumbled in shame, a little angry at herself for being so bad at this.

Her brother scoffed, "You did awesome! Besides, that was your first try. Everyone needs some practice so that they can get better."

Her parents seemed to agree and so Skye nodded resolutely, now determined to learn how to swim so that she wouldn't be afraid of the water anymore.

"Listen up sweetheart, you did an amazing job but one thing you should never, ever do is panic. When you started to sink, you panicked didn't you?"

She nodded at her dad, who said, "I know it's hard but always try to keep a level head. Panicking has never helped anyone."

"Okay Daddy," She said as she slowly unwrapped her arms around her mom so that she was floating in front of her, "Can I try again?"

"Of course you can, and remember, all you have to do is try to be a tiny bit better than the time before."

Skye took her mom's advice to heart as she loosened her hold on her mom's arms and quickly kicked her legs. She stayed afloat for longer than before, which made her heart soar, but soon enough, she slowly started to sink. For a second she started to panic, her heart started beating wildly and she thrashed around, but then she managed to calm down and kick her legs a little faster, which managed to keep her above water.

When her legs started to feel heavy and it was hard to catch her breath, her dad grabbed her and set her on the edge of the pool, "Why don't we take a break and when we get back in, we'll teach you how to move your arms?"

Skye nodded enthusiastically as she greedily gulped down air and plopped onto her back to rest.

* * *

Concentrating on moving her arms and legs in sync, Skye let her family's cheers wash over her and fuel her confidence as she tried to stay above water for what felt like the fifty millionth time.

"Come one Skye! Just a few more feet and you'll make it to dad!" Nattie shouted from where she was cheering her on by the rest of her family next to the edge of the pool.

Taking a deep breath, Skye pushed her face into the water and flailed around for a moment before she found a rhythm and made her way towards her family.

When she resurfaced, she was delighted to see that she was much closer to her family than she was before. Ignoring the heaviness in her legs and the slight burning sensation in her arms, she repeated herself over and over until she was close enough to reach out and take her dad's hand. He hauled her into his arms while her family cheered happily, even a few of the people around them joined in, and Skye smiled so widely that her cheeks hurt.

Breathlessly, she exclaimed, "I did it! I did it!"

"She did it!" Trip shouted before looking around and yelling even louder, "Did everyone see that? My sister just learned how to swim!"

Skye's cheeks heated up as a few people clapped and chattered around them, even the grumpy lifeguard clapped for a moment before blowing her whistle at some kids running around the other end of the pool.

She felt victorious, like she could do anything she wanted and nothing could stop her. She couldn't believe that she had learned how to swim, something she thought she would probably never be able to do, in only a day. It was a very long, scary, and stressful day, but it was totally worth it.

After the initial celebration, everyone climbed out of the pool to dry off and go get some ice cream to commemorate her milestone. Skye was wrapped up in her watermelon-decorated towel when she tugged on her mom's tank top and her dad's sleeve.

They finished admonishing Nattie for not wearing enough sunscreen, her bright pink skin was going to _hurt_ later on, and turned to her.

Pulling her towel a little tighter around her, she softly said, "Thanks for teaching me how to swim. I never thought I'd actually be able to do it."

Her dad knelt down in front of her, "You are very welcome sweetheart. Your mom and I are so proud of you! You learned how to swim in only a day!"

"You're so talented baby, look at what you can do when you put your mind to something," Her mom added.

She grinned before running forward and tackling her parents into a tight hug, overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude and happiness that Melinda May and Phil Coulson were _her_ mom and dad.

* * *

Gimme your thoughts please! And if you're interested, I'm revising You Can Trust Me on ao3 under the username dorkyassassins. Thanks for reading! x


	92. Skye Gets a Library Card

**A super sweet guest left the best review and wanted to see a chapter about Skye getting a library card! I hope you and your sister Isabel like it! :)**

* * *

Skye had been coming to the public library every Wednesday and Saturday at 10:00am with Jemma and Fitz since summer break had started. Her and Jemma's mommy would take turns bringing them while the other one would have "an afternoon off."

They would all sit down between the bookshelves in an aisle in front of whichever bookshelf had the books that had captured Jemma and Fitz's interest that week, and while her friends would burn through book after book, Skye would browse through a book from the children's section until it was Group Storytime at 10:30.

Jemma and Fitz were usually too enraptured with what they were reading to join her on the polka-dotted rug in the children's room for storytime but Skye _loved_ it. Sometimes they did puppet shows or made the stories more interactive but no matter what they did, Skye _always_ enjoyed herself.

She loved Jemma's mommy but she was always even happier when her mom brought them to the library, like today, because her mom would sit with her on the polka-dotted rug (always keeping Jemma and Fitz in eyesight, of course) and follow along with the story with her.

Today they were listening to the librarian, Ms. Woodsman, read 'If You Give a Moose a Muffin'. Skye had this book at home and she read it all the time but it sounded better when Ms. Woodsman read it. She gave the characters different voices and seemed to enjoy the story just as much as the children did, which made the story more special.

They were finishing up the book, she was sitting on a dark blue polka-dot and her mom was sitting on a red one, and Skye was completely focused on the story and Ms. Woodsman's silly voices.

Skye liked Ms. Woodsman and kind of considered her as one of her friends. The librarian was young, with curly brown hair and an encompassing love and passion for books. They would always talk after storytime and Skye liked how Ms. Woodsman spoke to her like a friend and not like a little kid.

Ms. Woodsman finished with her story and Skye had to blink a few times to focus back on the people around her.

"Thank you so much for coming everyone. We have Group Storytime every Wednesday and Saturday at 10:30 until school starts up again and I hope to see you again soon!" Ms. Woodsman gave everyone a warm smile and stood up, which signaled to everyone else that it was time to disperse.

Kids ran off to go find their parents and she and her mom stood up too, "Are you going to go say hi?"

Skye nodded excitedly, already craning her neck to find Ms. Woodsman through the crowd of children and parents.

Her mom pointed Ms. Woodsman out and put a hand on her shoulder, "Okay, I'm going to go grab Fitz and Jemma. You stay within sight and with Ms. Woodsman. I'll be right back."

"Okay Mommy," She hastily said and then took off, running towards the librarian and expertly dodging around the small crowd of people slowly filing out of the children's room.

"Hi Ms. Woodsman!" She said excitedly and slightly out of breath.

Ms. Woodsman gave her a kind smile, "Hello Skye. Can you please use your library voice? We don't want to distract any of the busy minds in here, do we?"

Skye shook her head, slightly ashamed of herself for breaking one of Ms. Woodsman's rules, "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it, we all need reminders sometimes," Ms. Woodsman gently tapped the underside of Skye's chin and gave her a warm smile. "For example, you just reminded me of a surprise I have for you."

Skye's eyes lit up at the promise of a surprise and she had to actively remind herself not to shout or create too much of a commotion. Even then, she couldn't stop herself from jumping up and down and whisper-shouting, "Really?"

Ms. Woodsman chuckled and nodded, "Really." She reached out and plucked a small stack of books off of the top of a bookshelf nearby, "I really think you'll like these books. I think they'll call to the adventurous spirit inside you."

The librarian handed her the books and Skye carefully held onto them, absolutely pleased with her surprise. The fact that Ms. Woodsman had taken the time and specifically thought of her when picking out these books made her feel warm and happy and special.

Holding the small stack of books close to her chest with one arm, she surged forward and wrapped her other arm tightly around Ms. Woodsman's waist, pressed her face against her tummy, and hoped the Ms. Woodsman could feel how grateful she was.

"Thank you so much. I'm so excited to read them!" She said and then she examined just how many books she had in her hand and her excitement dimmed a bit, "But… I can't finish them all today. There's too many and I'm kind of a slow reader."

Ms. Woodsman grinned and grabbed something else off of the bookshelf, "Well then it's a good thing that you now have your very own library card."

Skye gasped and tentatively took the card from Ms. Woodsman. The small rectangular piece of plastic had her name on it and it felt precious to her, "But I thought library cards were only for grown ups?"

"They're for anyone who wants one, this is a public library and everyone should be able to use it." Ms. Woods motioned behind her and Skye looked back to see her mom and friends making their way towards her, "Your mom had one made for you the last time she was here."

She felt a little choked up, especially since her mom knew how much coming to the library meant to her. She was a slow reader, even though she had all but caught up to her grade's reading level, and coming to the library was helping her get better and better. Plus, reading was an adventure to her, each new story introduced her to new friends and different worlds, and with her school's library being closed for the summer, the public library had started to become her favorite place to go.

A familiar hand wrapped around her and rested on her shoulder and Skye automatically leaned into the touch. Her mom reached out to shake Ms. Woodsman's hand, "Thank you for storytime today, I know Skye loved it."

"Of course, I love doing it," Ms. Woodsman shook her mom's hand before leaning down to say hi to Jemma and Fitz. "Hey you guys, what're you learning about today?"

Jemma and Fitz started talking over one another, something that made Skye chuckle and Ms. Woodsman absolutely light up with delight.

"Constellations! Did you know that-"

"Did you know each one has a story behind it?"

"It's incredibly fascinating-"

"I can't believe we haven't read about them sooner!"

"If you'd like to see some constellations, you should visit the observatory just outside of town. They have family nights twice a month and astronomers will come and point out the constellations for you," Ms. Woodsman informed them.

Jemma and Fitz looked at each other, eyes comically wide, before turning to her mom and tugging on her shirt and asking if they could go some time. Skye joined in, knowing just enough about constellations to know that stars were involved and those were one of her _favorite_ things.

"Mommy can we go? I _love_ the stars!" She begged, almost dropping her books as she joined her friends in pulling at her mom's clothes.

"Of course we can baby, it sounds like fun. We can look it up when we get home."

They all cheered, making sure to use their inside voices, and Jemma and Fitz turned to each other and started chattering about which constellations they were most excited to see. She turned back to Ms. Woodsman and grinned, "Thanks for telling us Ms. Woodsman, you know _everything_."

The librarian chuckled and reached out for a hug, which Skye happily leaned into, "Thank you Skye, that's very kind of you. You have fun reading those books and I'm very excited to talk to you about them when you've finished with them."

Skye squeezed her tight and then let go, saying goodbye to her favorite librarian and watching her disappear among the large stacks of books.

* * *

"Calm down baby, I'm sure Ms. Woodsman will understand. She's not going to be upset at you so take a deep, calming breath."

It was impossible for Skye to catch her breath, not when one of her favorite people was going to absolutely hate her guts in the next hour. She didn't know how her mom expected her to just calm down, especially when her heart was beating so fast and her lungs were burning and her thoughts were yelling at her at a mile a minute.

She had dropped her library book in a puddle on the way out of school, it had been raining all day and the puddle was deep and muddy and the book was _ruined_ , and Skye just knew that Ms. Woodsman would never, ever forgive her for this. Books were special and sacred and Ms. Woodsman had trusted her to take care of the books that she had given her and Skye had ruined it and broken her trust.

The slightly damp, crumpled mess of a book was sitting in her hands and she stared at the muddy cover until her eyes started to burn with unshed tears.

She needed to do something to make this right.

In a flash, she bolted out of the living room, leaving her mom confused and shouting after her, and sprinted into her room. She gingerly set the ruined book on her desk, crawled over to her bookshelf, and grabbed the bright pink plastic piggy bank from one of the shelves. It was heavy and when she shook it, the coins clanged together.

It had taken her a year's worth of allowances, bribes from her siblings, and holiday money to fill up her piggy bank and part of her was sad to see it go but another part, a bigger part, of her would do anything to fix what she had done.

With her piggy bank in one hand and the soggy book in the other, she ran back downstairs. The gnawing fear that she had ruined her friendship with Ms. Woodsman still haunted her but she finally caught her breath and calmed down a bit now that she had a plan.

Her mom was where she had left her, standing uncertainly in the middle of the living room, but now there was a confused and curious look on her face.

Holding out the piggy bank, she determinedly said, "I'm gonna pay for the book and hopefully will forgive me and still be my friend."

Her mom sighed and knelt in front of her, "I'm happy you want to fix your mistake baby, I'm very proud of you for being such a big girl, but Ms. Woodsman is your friend and I'm certain that she'll forgive you."

She gave her mom a doubtful look and straightened up, readying herself for battle, and looked her mom in the eye, "Can we go to the library now?"

* * *

Even though she had given herself a pep talk on the car ride over and was determined to be a big girl, Skye still hid behind her mom as they walked into the library and found Ms. Woodsman between some bookshelves.

The librarian smiled widely when she saw them and that just made the guilt inside of her increase exponentially.

"Hey, I didn't expect to see you until storytime tomorrow. Have you finished your books already Skye?" Ms. Woodsman asked as she knelt down to Skye's level.

Skye had told herself over and over again that she wasn't going to cry, that she was going to be a big girl and own up to her mistake, but at Ms. Woodsman's gentle and hopeful voice, she cracked. Big fat tears rolled down her face and she blubbered, "I'm so sorry Ms. Woodsman! I didn't mean to let you down!"

The librarian gave her mom a worried look before comfortingly shushing her and pulling her into a warm hug, which only served to make Skye feel even more guilty that she was comforting her for doing something awful. Even still, she leaned into the hug, fully expecting it to be the last one Ms. Woodsman ever gave her.

"Oh honey, you could never let me down. It's okay," Ms. Woodsman murmured as she rubbed her back.

Skye hiccupped and tried to get control over herself, "But… but I did the worst thing _ever_."

Ms. Woodsman leaned back a bit and put her hands on Skye's shoulders, "You committed a felony?"

Skye tilted her head in confusion, guilt momentarily forgotten, "Huh? I don't think so."

The librarian gave her a small grin and wiped away her tears, "Then it can't be that bad."

She was still expecting Ms. Woodsman to be angry with her, so she steeled herself and shakily said, "I ruined a book. I accidentally dropped it in a puddle and it's destroyed!"

She motioned to her mom, who was holding the book, and then dropped her backpack onto the ground and pulled out her piggy bank. Before could say anything, she shoved the piggy bank into the librarians arms and hastily said, "But I'll pay for it and do anything to make it better. Please don't be mad at me!"

Ms. Woodsman studied her for a long moment and Skye tried not to squirm too much, but then the librarian pull her into another hug and squeezed her reassuringly, "Listen Skye, I know you, and I know you would never purposely hurt a book. Accidents happen and I'm proud of you for owning up to it and trying to make it right. Most adults have trouble doing that."

The huge rush of relief swept through her body and Skye slumped against Ms. Woodsman. The fact that Ms. Woodsman wasn't angry at her lifted a huge weight off of her shoulders and she was so grateful to have Ms. Woodsman as her friend.

She sniffled and leaned back, "Are you sure you aren't mad?"

Ms. Woodsman chuckled, ran a comforting hand down her arm, and stood up, "I'm very sure. How about we make sure this book is taken care of and then we can talk about the other ones you've read. I'm eager to hear which one was your favorite."

Wiping her nose on her sleeve, she grabbed onto Ms. Woodsman's hand and nodded, ready to move past this whole situation and happy that she still had her friend.

* * *

Please leave me your thoughts and some suggestions for future chapters! Thanks for reading! xx


	93. Skye Goes to Dance Class

**Hey guys! This has been highly requested so I hope you like it! Skye finally goes to dance class! xx**

* * *

"I'm ready to go!" Skye shouted, eagerly bouncing down the stairs and into the living room where her parents were waiting for her.

It had taken a little while for Nattie to pull her hair back into the tight ballerina bun that was resting on the top of her head but all of the tugging on her hair was worth it because she looked like a _real_ ballerina with her bun wrapped in a pale pink bow. Half the fun of signing up for dance class was being able to wear her cool new dance clothes. Her ballet class' dress code required her to wear her black leotard and white tights, which made her feel super cool like her sister, but her pale pink tutu was her own personal touch.

"Okay, we just have to get Jemma first," Her mom said, pulling her jacket on and looking over to her, doing a quick double take and breaking into a smile, "Aw, you look so cute baby."

Grinning widely, she spun around in circles so that her parents could see her outfit from every angle before strutting forward and striking silly poses. Her dad pulled his phone out and took a couple of pictures while her mom cheered her on, Nattie joining in as she made her way down the stairs.

Her impromptu fashion show was cut short by a familiar knock at the door, which prompted her to run forward and excitedly yank it open. Her friend started jumping up and down when she saw her so Skye did too, pointing at Jemma's similar outfit and squealing happily.

It took a long moment before her mom could rein them in, the both of them too excited about finally being able to go to their first dance class together, but finally, she managed to usher them and Natasha out of the house and to the car with her dad shouting encouraging words after them.

Once they were on their way, some of Skye's excitement dimmed as nerves took its place. She wanted to take ballet classes because the way Nattie danced made it look like a wonderful adventure. It was stupid to think that she could start out and dance like her sister did, no one was expecting her to be great, just to have fun, but she was still nervous about trying something new in front of a group of people she didn't know.

Jemma was chattering happily about the documentary she and her mom had watched last night and Skye stayed quiet, trying to chase away the tight knot taking root in her tummy.

Nattie turned around in the front seat, gave her a concerned look, reached back and patted her knee before whispering just loud enough to be heard, "I'll be with you the whole time, it'll be fun, I promise."

Nodding, Skye tried her best to let her sister's words comfort her and distracted herself by launching into a hot debate with Jemma about the best game to play on the playground.

* * *

It took three full ballet classes until Skye finally felt comfortable enough to wander away from Natasha and actually fully participate in the class and to Melinda, it was a sight to behold.

The class wasn't large, only six or seven children, but to May, her daughter stole the show. It wasn't that she was particularly skilled or _good_ at dancing, in fact, Melinda would very lovingly and affectionately tell her husband how their child was the least skilled dancer in the class. Her lack of balance, grace, and fine-motor skills was completely made up for by her endless enthusiasm and positive attitude.

By the fourth class, Natasha and the ballet instructor, Mrs. Lowell, were teaching the children how to turn properly. The children had become fast friends, all of them eager to learn and quick to joke with one another, and Melinda watched as Skye attempted to turn and abruptly crashed to the floor. She hid a grin as her daughter hopped up, brushed off her tutu, and loudly praised Jemma for being able to complete a turn without falling.

From her spot at the side of the room where all the parents watched their kids quietly, she heard Jemma thank Skye and offer to teach her how to position her feet. It had to have been the sixth time Jemma had very kindly prodded Skye's feet into the right position with Natasha's guidance but Skye just couldn't get the hang of turning.

Skye seems completely unconcerned, trying over and over to turn with the other kids cheering her on. Each time, she either falls over or out of her turn prematurely, but she always has a bright smile on her face as she gets back up.

After Mrs. Lowell deems that the class has gotten the basics of turning down, minus Skye, she and Natasha arrange the children into a large circle and prompt them to skip around. The children love it, they think they're just playing, but Melinda knows that the skipping helps with their motor skills and rhythm.

She watches on as Skye skips after Jemma, heavy footed and stumbling over her own feet, looking like a regular fish out of water among the other, more graceful, dancers. Melinda can't help but hide a grin behind her hand at the wide, toothy smile on Skye's face and her complete lack of self-consciousness at her dance skills.

After a bit, the children stop skipping and she hears Skye loudly point out how amazing everyone had done before leaning in and not-so-quietly whispering to Mikey how it had been _awesome_ how high he had been able to skip.

It was nearing the end of the class and for the last ten minutes, Mrs. Lowell always played music and let the children dance freely.

The kids cheer happily when a popular song starts blaring through the speakers and the parents ooh and ahh over their squirming, wiggling children. Skye holds hands with a small, curly-haired girl named Molly and they both spin each other around, giggling and trying to catch their breaths.

Molly manages to catch Skye when the little girl inevitably trips over her own feet and then they wave Jemma over, circle around Natasha, and start skipping around the redhead. Natasha takes this opportunity to break out a few moves, which Skye pauses to compliment and gush over, causing Jemma and Molly to crash into her.

The three girls giggle uncontrollably as Natasha checks them over to make sure they're alright. Once they're cleared, the girls run of to go dance with some of the other children.

The dance instructor uses this time to come over and talk with the parents about the mid-season recital that they put on. Mel already knows about the recital, Skye had been talking about it nonstop since she'd heard about it at their last class, and by now, their whole family and all of their friends were planning on attending.

Melinda's watching Skye do an odd rendition of the chicken dance when Mrs. Lowell pulls her aside and gives her a kind smile, "Skye's such a joy to have in class."

She nodded and chuckled, "She certainly enjoys it."

They both glance at her daughter in time to see her clap wildly and cheer Mikey on as he attempts to do a cartwheel. When the little boy successfully lands on his feet, Skye apparently has to try it out herself and ends up a mess of limbs on the floor. Mikey winced and helped her up before giving her a step-by-step instruction on how to properly do a cartwheel.

"You know about the recital, right?" At her nod, Mrs. Lowell continued, 'Well, we'll be starting choreography for our dance next class and, as I'm sure you know, Skye…" The instructor floundered, obviously trying to find the right thing to say in the nicest way possible.

Melinda took pity on her and offered, "She isn't as… skilled as the other children."

Mrs. Lowell hastily said, "What she lacks in skills she more than makes up for in energy and passion. I just wanted to let you know that I've showed Natasha the choreography so that she can work with Skye at home so she doesn't feel like she's falling behind. We want everyone's skills to be showcased at the recital."

"Thank you, I really appreciate the thoughtfulness but I'm sure Skye is going to have fun no matter what."

Her statement was punctuated by Skye's loud peals of laughter coming from across the room as she climbed onto Natasha's back and let her sister try to shake her off while keeping a tight grip on her legs.

Mrs. Lowell smiled widely, "I'm sure she will too."

* * *

Skye peered around the curtains, gulping loudly at the large crowd of people sitting in the auditorium. She easily spotted her family and friends, they took up a whole row and were very hard to miss.

She clenches her blue tutu tightly between her fingers and tries to ward off her impending panic until a familiar hand wraps around her shoulder and tugs her away from the stage. Turning around, she throws her arms around her sister's waist and carefully avoids messing up her pretty costume while still trying to wiggle as close as possible.

"What's wrong маленькая звезда? Are you nervous?" Her sister asked, running a hand comfortingly up and down her back.

Skye nodded and tried to ignore the queasy feeling in her stomach.

"I get nervous before performing too," Nattie whispered.

Leaning back a bit, she looks up at her sister, "For real."

Nattie chuckled and shrugged, "For real, you've seen me before my recitals. I'm a mess, aren't I?"

Her sister _was_ kind of a mess before her performances. Squeezing her sister tightly, she reassuringly said, "Yeah but you're always _awesome_."

Natasha laughed and squeezed her back before kneeling in front of her, "And you'll be awesome too. Don't let your nerves get to you."

She tried to let her sister's words reassure her and pushed away her nerves. Her sister gave her a grin and absently straightened the straps on her leotard, "You know all the steps, you're going to do great маленькая звезда."

It was true, she did know all the steps, but knowing the steps wasn't the problem. She winced and mumbled, "I'm not very good at doing the steps, am I?"

Giving her a serious look, Natasha made sure she was eye-level and seriously said, "What're you talking about Skye? You're great at dancing. You love doing it and it shows."

She did love dancing but she knew that she wasn't as good as all the other kids in the class. It had never bothered her before because she still had fun and no one ever made her feel bad but that was in class and now she was going to be dancing in front of a bunch of people. It was different.

Nattie tapped the underside of her chin and Skye looked up at her, "The important thing is that you always try your best and have fun. You can do that, right?"

Straightening up, she nodded resolutely, "I can do that."

"Good girl, now I'll be right beside the stage cheering you on and so will everyone else. You're going to do great, I know you will."

Finally, she felt most of her nerves go away and the knot in her tummy loosened up.

She waited with Nattie and the rest of her class as the studio owner talked onstage and then the toddler class did their dance and then it was their turn. Mrs. Lowell and Nattie guided them to the stage and made sure they were in the correct spots as they waited for the cheering from the audience to die down.

The light shining on them made it difficult to see anyone beyond the third row in the audience, which Skye appreciated because it helped her stay calm. She focused on Jemma, who was in the row in front of her, and waited for the music to start.

When it finally did, she moved automatically. The steps were ingrained into her and halfway through the song, she loosened up and started to enjoy herself more.

She tried to twirl when she was supposed to and jump as high as she could but she didn't do as well as the rest of her group. She didn't let it get her down because she was having fun and trying her best, just like her sister told her to do, and she realized that she didn't mind not being the absolute best in her class.

Her dad crept up to the front of the stage to get a picture and she spotted him, paused what she was doing, and waved, before realizing that she was supposed to be focusing on her dance. The audience laughed and Skye grinned, trying her best to twirl across the stage and then running to center stage for the group's final pose.

The music stopped and the audience applauded loudly, she could distinctly hear Hunter and Clint whistling and hollering for her, and she smiled so widely that her cheeks started to hurt.

They bowed and she scurried off the stage and immediately jumped into Nattie's waiting arms. Her sister hugged her tight and exclaimed, " You did so well! I'm so proud of you маленькая звезда."

It felt like her smile would never disappear as she hugged her sister tightly and thanked her before turning around and hugging Jemma, who was talking a mile a minute and jumping up and down excitedly.

She might not be the best dancer but she had fun and tried her best, which was all she and her family wanted anyways.

* * *

Leave me your thoughts and if you have any prompts, please send them in! I'm running low on ideas xx


	94. Wanda Helps Skye with her Crush

**Phoenix Brooke wanted to see a one-shot centered around Skye and Wanda where Wanda helps Skye deal with a crush. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

Skye was _so confused_.

She kept acting weird and she could see herself doing and saying things she normally wouldn't but she couldn't _stop_ herself and it was _so frustrating_. It was all because of some stupid boy, Lucas, and she hated him… except that she didn't.

She desperately needed advice and help but she was too embarrassed to ask anyone so she continued to make herself look like an idiot in front of Lucas every day at school. Today was the last straw, after tripping over her own feet twice and not being able to remember simple words in front of Lucas, she had decided that she was sick of acting this way and that something needed to change.

It was difficult to think about who to turn to; Jemma didn't have crushes, it was too embarrassing to talk to her mom and dad about, and Nattie would've probably listened and helped but knowing her sister, she probably would've offered advice that Skye wasn't confident enough to take.

Her frustration levels were rising, both at herself and at dumb Lucas, and she stomped through the front door after school, telling her mom that she didn't want a snack and was going to start on her homework in the backyard. She was mumbling to herself about stupid boys when she shut the back door and made her way to the patio table.

"Are you alright Skye?"

She jumped and spun around, surprised to find Wanda lounging on the hammock, holding a book and giving her a concerned look.

A part of her was worried that Wanda had heard her small rant but her sister was too far away to hear her angry muttering.

She shrugged and set her backpack on the table, "I'm okay."

Her sister gave her a doubtful look but didn't press the issue, instead she silently went back to reading her book.

Sitting down, Skye pulled out her math workbook and attempted to get her problems done. It only took a few minutes for her to completely give up and think about her problem.

She had never liked anyone before, not the way she liked Lucas, and she didn't know what to do. All she knew was that she really, _really_ wanted to stop acting so silly around him.

She rested her chin on her hand and sighed before her eyes caught on Wanda again. Her sister was quietly reading her book, completely caught up in the story, and Skye wanted to pinch herself for overlooking Wanda as someone to go to for help.

Her sister was incredibly insightful and smart, she looked and listened and was able to see things that most people missed. Wanda was soft spoken and earnest and if anyone could help her make light of what she was feeling in a gentle way, it was her.

Abandoning her homework, she shuffled down the porch and to the hammock, where she stood uncertainly for a moment before unceremoniously plopping down so that she was partially on top of her sister. Wanda lowered her book and raised her eyebrows, clearly asking what she was doing, but butterflies erupted in her tummy and she found that she was unable to say anything.

Wanda gave her another long look before going back to her book, giving her privacy and a chance to get her thoughts together.

The steady sound of pages crinkling and turning helped her calm down and she slowly started to relax. Finally, she leaned her head on Wanda's shoulder and sighed heavily, "I have a problem."

Her sister bookmarked her page and set her book down, giving Skye her full attention, "Do you want to tell me about it?"

Her cheeks heated up just thinking about Lucas so she turned to hide her face in Wanda's shoulder and mumbled, "I like a boy. I mean, I like like a boy."

"What's he like?" She couldn't see her sister but she thought that she could hear the smile in her voice.

Pulling her face away from Wanda, she sprawled out dramatically and groaned, "He's so dumb! His name's Lucas and he's the second fastest runner in the class, behind me of course, and he sits beside me when we go to art and music class." Skye huffed, remembering how she had accidentally spilled paint all over his art project when he had complimented her painting. She crossed her arms angrily, "He's got curly black hair and stupid brown eyes and picks me first to be on his soccer team at recess."

Wanda laughed lightly and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "He sounds like a nice boy."

Skye grumbled and rolled her eyes. Lucas _was_ a nice boy, he was kind to everyone and always offered help when someone needed it, and she hated how much she liked that about him.

When she didn't say anything, Wanda poked her tummy, "You said you had a problem, what is it?"

"Well… I've never liked anyone before and every time I'm around him, I end up doing or saying something dumb."

Wanda tilted her head curiously, "Like what?"

Skye hid her face in Wanda's shirt again because she was so embarrassed but she managed to mumble, "The other day he was telling me about how much he liked the Ninja Turtles and then he asked me if I liked them too."

"I'm… not sure what the problem with that is Skye," Wanda said, clearly confused.

She threw up her hands, "Well I said that I liked them even though I don't even know what they are! And then he asked which one was my favorite but I don't _know_ any of them so I just _ran away_."

Her sister's lips twitched up into a tiny grin, "It sounds like you're nervous and are probably over thinking about what you're doing when you're around him."

"How do I stop doing that?" She asked and then an idea hit her and she perked up, "I can ignore him! If I hide during recess and sit between Jemma and Fitz in class, I can avoid him 'til middle school!"

"Well you could do that, or you could try something else," Wanda said, clearly trying not to laugh.

Skye tilted her head, not sure that there was any other way to get over her crush, "Like what?"

"You could tell Lucas that you like him."

That sounded crazy and Skye leaned away from her sister, ready to tell her how bad that plan was, when Wanda held up her hands, "Hear me out, okay?"

She had to force herself to sit back and actually listen to her sister, still too riled up about Wanda thinking it could be a good idea to actually tell Lucas that she had a crush on him.

"If you tell him, it's out there and you'll know where you stand. It could help you get over your nerves and gain some confidence around him so that you can act like your normal, cool self."

Scrunching up her nose, Skye considered Wanda's suggestion.

It seemed like her sister might have a point; if she told Lucas that she liked him, all the awkwardness that she felt around him would probably go away because she wasn't trying to hide it.

There was one drawback to her sister's plan though and it was a pretty big one, "But what if he doesn't like me back?" Her eyes widened as she thought of all the possibilities, namely the ones where Lucas laughed in her face.

Wanda tugged her close and said, "Why wouldn't he like you? You're great."

The way Wanda said that she was great, like it was a well-known and established fact of life, made Skye's cheeks heat up and she snuggled closer to her sister.

Wanda's confidence in her made feel more confident in herself, so she said, "I guess I could try that. I just don't want him to laugh at me."

"From what you've said, Lucas sounds like a nice boy and I really doubt that he'll laugh in your face," Wanda comforted her.

Skye made a face, "He could still not like me back, that would not be very good."

"There's a chance that he might not like you back and if that does happen, you'll probably be a little sad for a bit and then move on, but at least you'll know."

She considered that and nodded slightly. Lucas not liking her back would be tough but she knew that Wanda was right and at least they would both know how each other felt about the other.

"But… what if I'm not brave enough to do it?" She asked, grabbing onto one of the many bracelets adorning her sister's wrist so that she had a reason not to make eye contact.

Wanda pulled Skye onto her lap and tapped under her chin so that she was looking her in the eye, "You're the bravest person I know, you can do anything you set your mind to." Her sister's words made her feel warm and loved but when she didn't say anything, Wanda fiddled with her hands for a second before dangling a bracelet in front of her face, "My parents gave this to me before they died. It helped me be brave through their funeral and when I moved in with mom and dad. It will help you be brave tomorrow when you talk to Lucas."

Skye gingerly took the bracelet, knowing that Wanda wore it every single day and that it was a very big deal that she was loaning it to her for the day.

It was a beautiful and simple bracelet, with three thin leather strips braided together and a lovely small seashell dangling from the center, and she knew that Wanda cherished it.

It meant a lot to her that Wanda trusted her with her bracelet, and when Wanda carefully tied it onto her wrist for her, Skye _knew_ she could be brave enough to do _anything_.

She admired the bracelet, it was too big for so Wanda had wrapped it around her wrist twice, and then threw her arms around her sister's neck. Tucking her face into the crook of Wanda's neck, she squeezed her tight and whispered, "Thanks Wanda, I love you."

"I love you too, little monkey," Wanda whispered back, patting her back and pressing a kiss to the side of her head.

When Skye leaned back and settled against Wanda's chest, her sister asked, "Want me to read you some of my book? It's Peter Pan."

She nodded and felt the frustration that had taken root inside of her over the last few days finally melt away as her sister opened up her book and started reading to her.

* * *

Skye took a big, deep breath and made her way over to where Lucas was tossing a tennis ball against the side of the school building during recess.

As she got closer, the tennis ball bounced off the wall out of Lucas' reach and she was able to snag it. He noticed her and gave her a friendly grin as she handed the ball back to him, "Hey Skye! Good catch."

"Thanks, I play catch with my brother a lot and-" She cut herself off before she could start rambling and grabbed onto Wanda's bracelet for some confidence, "And I gotta tell you something."

Lucas gave her his full attention, tilting his head in a way that Skye definitely didn't think was kinda cute.

Rubbing Wanda's bracelet between her fingers to give her some bravery, she put her hands on her hips and forcefully said, "I like you!"

For a long, torturous moment Lucas was still and quiet, and Skye seriously considered running away, but then he grinned and the pressure on her chest eased up a bit.

"I like you too," Lucas said easily.

Skye was shocked at how easy that had been and a large part of her thought that Lucas had probably just misunderstood her, so she rolled her eyes and said, "You know I mean that I like like you, right? Not just regular like."

Lucas tilted his head again, grin still on his face, and confidently stated, "I know. I like like you too."

"Oh," Skye said, momentarily puzzled. Then everything caught up to her and she smiled brightly, "Oh! Okay, good."

It was silent for a few long moments and she dug her foot into the dirt, "Now what?"

Lucas shrugged, stared at the tennis ball in his hand, and then offered it to her, "Wanna play with me?"

* * *

Skye flew through the front door, dropping her backpack onto the ground and running through the house shouting, "Wanda! Wanda, you were right!"

Nattie and Trip were sitting on the couch and staring at her like she was nuts and her mom followed after her into the house, having already given up on trying to get any information out of her.

Wanda poked her head around the corner in the kitchen and gave her a puzzled look.

She was running too fast and collided with her sister, who successfully caught her without falling over, and excitedly yelled, "You were right! Your bracelet made me brave!"

Holding up her arm, she waved the bracelet in Wanda's face and gleefully shouted, "He likes me back!"

"I knew he would. I'm happy for you, little monkey," Wanda said, squeezing her into a tight hug and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

Skye pressed her face into Wanda's shirt and let out a big sigh before looking up at her sister and whispering, "I think your bracelet is magic."

Wanda was still chuckling when the rest of her family wandered into the kitchen to see what was going on.

* * *

Gimme your thoughts and send me your prompts! xx


	95. Wanda Helps Skye pt 2

**As requested, here's a quick follow up of the last chapter in Wanda's POV!**

* * *

Wanda was happy for her youngest sister; having a crush was hard enough without knowing if they liked you back, but now Skye knew for sure that her little crush, Lucas, had the same feelings for her as she did for him.

It was also nice to know that her advice had worked and that Skye had felt comfortable enough to come to her for help. Judging from the confusion on the rest of her family's faces, she hadn't talked to the rest of them about her 'problem'.

Skye was still leaning into her for a hug, accidently bouncing on her toes but she was light enough not to mind, blabbering on about the magical properties her bracelet supposedly possessed.

Trip pulled himself onto the counter and tilted his head, "What's she going on about?"

Her mom shrugged and helped her dad start to pull ingredients out of the refrigerator and cabinets for dinner, "She wouldn't tell me what was going on, only that Wanda knew."

"C'mon Skye, tell us what's going on," Natasha said, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl, taking a large bite out of it, and pulling herself onto the counter next to their brother.

Skye untied her bracelet from her wrist and handed it back to her before saying, "Wanda's bracelet is magical!"

Natasha took another bite of her apple and raised an eyebrow, clearly not understanding what was going on, so she nudged Skye and prompted her to explain further.

"It made me brave enough to tell Lucas I like like him and he said he like likes me back!" Skye said happily, turning around to face everyone and give them a bright smile.

Trip and Natasha took the news very well, cheering heartily and high-fiving each other. Her mom and dad seemed to take the news in stride, sharing a look with each other while Wanda tried not to grin. Her mom recovered first, smiling widely at Skye and kneeling down in front of her to ask her questions about Lucas but her dad, on the other hand, looked like he was sucker punched in the stomach.

She had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing at his expression but he managed to school his features back to somewhat normal fairly quickly. Soon enough, he was also kneeling in front of Skye and hoarsely asking, "When did you start like liking people? I didn't know you had crushes."

She glanced up to see Natasha and Trip with similar expressions of delight on their faces, obviously enjoying the strained set of their dad's shoulders and the hoarseness in his throat as much as she was. It was painfully obvious their dad was _not_ prepared for Skye to start having crushes.

"Lucas is my first _real_ crush Daddy," Skye said, completely oblivious to how odd their dad was being.

Her mom sneakily smacked him on the arm so that Skye wouldn't see and he seemed to shake off his shock and started to act a little more normal. In an effort to take Skye's attention away from their dad until he regained his composure, their mom asked, "And he likes you back?"

Skye nodded eagerly, clearly pleased with how the whole situation turned out, "He like _likes_ me back, he said so!"

The words were barely out of her mouth before Skye started jumping up and down, twirling in excited circles with her hands in the air, unable to keep her enthusiasm at bay any longer.

Her dad made a strangled noise and managed to ask, "What happens now that you both know you like each other?"

Skye stopped twirling and jumping long enough to say, "I dunno! We'll probably play together at recess and share snacks at snack time."

She reached out to pat her dad on the shoulder and was very glad when his face went back to its normal shade and he seemed to gain control of himself. It was normal for kids to have crushes and she knew her dad just wanted to protect his youngest child but any negative or strange reaction might cause Skye to feel shame about the way she felt, which wouldn't have been good. Thankfully, her dad seemed fine after his small episode, and he let her mom pull him back to his feet.

"Well, we're very happy for you sweetheart," He said, wrapping an arm around her mom and leaning against the counter.

Skye grinned and stopped spinning, slightly out of breath, and smiled at him, "Thanks. Wanda helped me be brave!"

It hadn't been that big of a deal, she had just told Skye what she wished she would've been told when she'd had her first crush, but the way Skye kept saying it made it seem like she had hung the moon and stars for her. She blushed and focused on putting her bracelet back on, shrugging when she didn't have any more excuses not to respond, "It was no problem Skye, you know I'm always here for you."

Her little sister ran back over, wrapped an arm around her leg, and pressed her face into her side, "I know, I love you."

"I love you too," She said, hugging Skye back.

Trip reached out and tugged Skye closer to him until he could haul her onto the counter between him and Natasha, "Now, tell us more about this Lucas."

Skye giggled and nodded before launching into an extremely detailed description of the boy.

* * *

Leave your thoughts and send in some prompts if you've got them! I'm running low! xx


	96. Pietro & Skye's Day

**A chapter centered on Skye and Pietro!**

* * *

A gentle hand softly nudged her shoulder before a quiet voice said, "Skye, wake up."

Rolling over, she stretched her arms above her head, attempted to snuggle deeper into her blankets, and mumbled, "Shh, voice too loud."

From across the room she heard her dad chuckle, and her mom nudged her shoulder again, "You wanted us to wake you up before we left, remember?"

Peeking an eye open, she saw her mom sitting next to her on her bed and her dad setting a duffel bag down by the doorway before making his way over to them. Sleepily, she rubbed her eyes and forced herself to sit up long enough to plop ungracefully into her mom's lap. Warm arms wrapped around her as she nuzzled her face into her mom's neck and whined.

The bed shifted a bit as her dad sat down beside them and said, "We'll only be gone for the weekend. Pietro's looking after you today and Nat, Trip, and Wanda should be back tonight."

She whined again and pressed her nose even deeper into the crook of her mom's neck. It wasn't that she wasn't excited to spend a whole day with her oldest brother, it was just that she was never very happy when her parents were gone.

Her mom started running her fingers through her hair, a comforting and familiar action that had her eyes feeling heavier by the second, so she forced herself to lean away so that she would be awake enough to say a proper goodbye.

"I don't want you to go," She said sleepily, pouting a bit and tilting her head to the side.

Leaning in to press a kiss to her forehead, her mom wrapped her into a tight hug and murmured, "I know but we'll be back before you know it. Plus, your brother has a fun surprise planned for the day."

She hugged her mom back, knowing that there was nothing she could do to get them to stay with her, and sighed, "Okay."

After a moment, her dad reached out, plucked her out of her mom's arms, and cuddled her close, "I want sleepy Skye snuggles too."

Skye giggled and hugged him tight, knowing that her dad often said that she was extra affectionate when she was sleepy, which he loved.

He tickled her sides and she halfheartedly squirmed away until he stopped, pressed a kiss to the top of her head, and gently set her back onto her bed. She didn't protest as he pulled her blankets back over her and tucked her in, "Call us if you need us. I love you, sleepy Skye."

"Love you too Daddy," She said, reaching for Alice, who was placed into her awaiting hands by her mom.

Her eyes closed without her permission as warm lips pressed a soft kiss to her cheek and her mom softly whispered, "I love you to the moon and back."

She managed to say, "More than all the stars-" before falling back into unconsciousness.

* * *

Waking up for the second time was much easier than before. The soft sun rays were streaming into her room, peeking over the trees in her backyard and managing to wake her up on her own.

She wandered downstairs, momentarily forgetting that her parents has already left for the weekend, but it all came back to her when she peered into the kitchen to find it empty rather than filled with her dad making breakfast, singing terribly and dancing around in his apron.

A quick look around the living room and dining room found that it was empty, so she trudged back upstairs, passing her siblings' empty rooms until she unceremoniously barged into Pietro's. Predictably, he was still sleeping, so she climbed onto his bed and started jumping up and down.

"Wake up!"

He groaned and pulled his blankets over his face, clearly trying to ignore her, but when she wouldn't stop jumping, he shoved his blankets away and managed to catch her before setting her down beside him. He squinted and groaned tiredly, "What time is it?"

She shrugged, "I dunno but I'm hungry. Can we make waffles?"

Pietro stretched, groaned again, and playfully rolled over so that he was resting on top of her legs. She squealed and tried to push him away, giggling when he reached out to poke her tummy, and after a moment he sat up, seemingly fully awake.

"I can make waffles happen."

She cheered happily and watched as her brother rolled out of bed, pulled a sweatshirt on, and grabbed his phone from his bedside table. Without warning, he grabbed her and set her on top of his shoulders. Her eyes widened and she laughed, clutching at his light hair for balance, and held on as they made their way downstairs.

"I have a surprise for you today," He said nonchalantly, purposefully bouncing down the stairs so that she had to hold on tight to keep from falling off his shoulders.

Some part of her vaguely remembered someone telling her that her brother had made fun plans for them today but she couldn't remember what it was, so she reached forward to poke his cheeks and nose, "What is it?"

They made it to the kitchen and her brother set her onto the counter and began pulling out what they'd need to make breakfast.

"Here's a hint: It involves water and a lot of fun."

Scrunching up her nose, she thought hard on it for a second and guessed, "Are we going to the pool?"

Her brother started mixing the waffle mix into a bowl, "Good guess but no." He paused for a moment, clearly trying to build the suspense, and he grinned when she huffed in impatience.

"We're going to the water park!"

Skye cheered happily, so excited for their plans that she didn't realize how close she was to toppling off the counter until her brother reached out to nudge her back to safety.

"The water park? I've never been there before!" She said, smiling widely and clapping her hands together.

Earlier in the summer, she had had plans to go with Leo, Jemma, and Jemma's mom until her two friends had backed out, claiming that the potential fun they could've had wasn't worth all the bacteria and germs that lived in water parks. Skye had been incredibly disappointed, not caring in the slightest about germs and bacteria that she couldn't see, only that their fun had been ruined.

"Today's even more special because it's Saturday. Do you know what the water park does on Saturdays?"

She shook her head.

"They project a movie above the tide pool and you can sit in your tube in the water and watch it!"

Skye cheered again, her excitement for the day growing and she found herself unable to sit still. Hopping off the counter, she took a moment to catch her balance before jumping up and down and tugging on her brother's sleeve, "Let's go now!"

Her brother chuckled and handed her a bag of chocolate chips, "We need to eat breakfast first and then change into our bathing suits and _then_ we can go, alright?"

Pouting slightly, she nodded dejectedly and shoved a handful of chocolate chips in her mouth, knowing that her brother wouldn't stop her like her dad usually did.

* * *

The fifteen minutes it took to drive out of town to the water park were spent with Skye chattering happily about their day while pausing intermittently to sing along to whichever song was playing on the radio. Pietro seemed incredibly pleased with himself for making such great plans for the two of them and Skye was unable to keep from squirming excitedly around in her booster seat, messing with her uneven ponytail, and tracing the pattern of the sundress covering her bathing suit with her finger.

After what felt like forever, they turned into the water park parking lot only to be met with a closed gate. Skye stretched up to try and peer out the windshield to see what the hold up was and her brother put the car in park before turning back to her and saying, "I'm gonna check this out, be right back."

He kept the car running as he jogged up to the gate and read the small sign hanging on it. Skye hoped that they were just early and the park hadn't opened up yet but the dejected look on her brother's face as he walked back to the car told her that their plans had been ruined.

Instead of getting back into the driver's seat, Pietro came around, opened her door, and leaned against the car. He gave her a sad look, "Bad news."

"What is it?" She asked, a small part of her still hoping that the water park would open up soon and she and her brother would be zooming down a water slide in no time.

"The park's closed today. A slide broke down and they're conducting maintenance on the rest of them."

Her brother looked as sad as she felt and she pouted, shrugged, and fiddled with her fingers in disappointment, "Oh. Okay."

She had really been looking forward to having fun at the water park with her big brother. Pietro was _always_ the person to turn to if she wanted to have fun without getting in trouble. He helped her come up with pranks for the rest of her siblings, let her do the things that her parents and rest of her siblings probably wouldn't let her do, like eat a bunch of cookies before dinner or jump on his bed, and only told her no when what she wanted to do could hurt her or someone else. He was her super fun sibling and if anyone could've made a day at the water park even more fun than it already would've been, it was Pietro.

"Don't worry Skye, I can fix this," He said determinedly, reaching forward to playfully tug on the end of her ponytail to get her attention.

She turned a skeptical look his way, "How? It's closed!" Tilting her head, she scrunched up her nose and imploringly asked, "We're not sneaking in, are we? Mommy and Daddy wouldn't like that."

Pietro chuckled, "No, we aren't sneaking in. Have some faith in your coolest big brother, would ya?"

She shrugged and nodded, "Okay."

"Okay."

Her brother got back into the car and pointed at her through the rearview mirror, "Close your eyes Skye, it's gonna be a surprise."

Used to his silly antics, she closed her eyes without question and kept them closed until they stopped.

"Can I open them now?"

"No, keep 'em closed. We just have to stop for some supplies real quick."

Her excitement was starting to come back and her brother knew exactly how to make everything seem like an awesome adventure. It was difficult to keep her eyes closed when all she wanted to do was see where they were but she managed to keep them closed as her brother got out of the car, unbuckled her, and balanced her on his hip.

"No peeking," He said, resting a gentle hand on the back of her head so that her face was pressed against his shirt and she was unable to see anything.

They wandered around wherever they were for a few long moments before an unfamiliar voice asked, "Can I help you with anything, sir?"

"Actually, yes thank you. Do you have a piece of paper and a pen?"

It was silent but Pietro shifted her slightly in his arms and she heard the familiar sound of pen scratching across paper before her brother said, "Can you show me where these things are?"

"Of course." The voice seemed to hesitate before asking, "Um, is she alright?"

Keeping her eyes closed, she blindly waved to where she thought the person was standing, "I'm okay."

"I'm surprising her and she's not allowed to peek."

The employee breathed out a sigh of relief and seemed much more enthusiastic when she said, "That's sweet of you. How about I grab a shopping cart and help you find these items?"

Her brother happily agreed and then she was being carried off through the store, trying to grasp at any hints she could to try to figure out the surprise, but her brother and the employee helping him were excellent at being secretive and she had no clue what was going on.

She stayed clueless as they left the store and arrived home. Pietro led her upstairs and into the playroom, covering the windows with the curtains and telling her to play here until he came up to get her. She obliged even though all she wanted to do was run downstairs and see what the surprise was.

* * *

The moment finally came when her brother led her downstairs, a hand firmly covering her eyes to keep her from seeing anything. She giggled as he purposefully guided her so that she gently bumped into the back door. She ricocheted off the door and reached back to swat at her brother as he led her onto the back porch.

He turned her to face a certain way and then asked, "Are you ready?"

"Yes!"

His hands uncovered her eyes and she blinked momentarily in the bright light before the scene in front of her came into view. Her eyes widened and she screamed in excitement, "Oh my gosh!"

The backyard had been transformed into a makeshift water park. There were two kiddie pools, one tucked underneath the playset so that she could zoom down the slide and land in the pool, and the other sitting off to the side of the yard with a bunch of her bath toys floating around in it. Pietro had set up some sprinklers on the other side and a slip and slide taking up the middle of the yard. She didn't know why a white sheet was hanging up on a portion of the fence across from the kiddie pool but she still loved it and everything else.

"It's our very own water park! And guess what?"

"What?"

"I can project a movie onto the sheet so you can watch it in the pool," Pietro said happily, motioning dramatically to the sheet and holding up his phone, "What do you want to watch?"

"Trolls!"

"I can make that happen."

Without warning, she lunged at her brother and tightly wrapped her arms around his waist, a deep sense of appreciation washing through her. She couldn't believe her brother had gone through all this trouble to make this happen, just for her.

Squeezing him tight, she said, "Thank you Pietro, we're gonna have so much fun!"

He patted her back before nudging her towards the grass, "You're welcome kiddo."

She shot across the yard, laughing happily as she aimed for the sprinklers.

"Special delivery," Pietro said, plopping down on the lawn chair sitting next to the kiddie pool she was splashing around in. He reached over to set some red, heart-shaped plastic sunglasses onto her nose before handing her a glass full of lemonade and setting a plate of watermelon slices down on the towel on the ground in front of her.

Pushing the sunglasses even further up her nose, she took a sip of her lemonade and smiled, "Thank you! Movie time?"

"Let's do this," He said, splashing her with some water before messing with his phone and setting it up so that they could see the opening scene of Trolls projected onto the sheet in front of them.

She happily played with her toys as the opening scenes of the movie started but pushed her toys to the side in favor of splashing her brother instead. The chilly water landed on his face and dampened his hair and his eyes widened in surprise for a moment before he grinned mischievously and unceremoniously rolled out of his chair and into the pool. A tidal wave of water hit her in the face and she spluttered and laughed and then they were both splashing each other until the water level in the pool got considerably lower.

"Hey check this out. I'm a waterbender," He stated, quickly skimming his hand just underneath the surface of the water and causing it to ripple away from his fingertips.

Intrigued, she tried to copy him, "I'm a waterbender too!"

She failed miserably, her fingers ended up breaking the surface, which only resulted in her splashing herself in the face, but it made her brother laugh, which made her smile.

Eventually, they calmed down and paid attention to the movie but about halfway through, she started shivering, so Pietro paused it, grabbed a towel, and held it open for her. She eagerly stepped into it and let him pat her dry before wrapping the towel tightly around her.

He dropped back into the lawn chair and she glanced at the spread out towel on the ground before opting to sit on her brother's lap instead. She leaned back against him and grabbed his arms so that she could cross them over her chest for extra warmth.

When they were both situated, she squeezed his arms tightly and said, "This was the perfect day."

"I thought so too," He said, hugging her a little tighter.

She craned her neck to give him a smile and then leaned down to press play on the phone before getting comfortable again to watch the rest of the movie.

* * *

Skye was lying on the floor in the middle of the living room right under the fan, letting the air cool down her warm skin, when the rest of her siblings walked through the front door. Pietro was in the kitchen putting their dirty dishes into the dishwasher but he shouted out a greeting to everyone.

"What're you doing on the floor?" Trip asked.

Skye squirmed around, trying to shift her dress around so that it didn't sit so heavily on her unnaturally warm skin, and said, "'Cause 'm hot and it's cool."

Trip raised his eyebrows and nodded, seemingly accepting her explanation, before jogging into the kitchen to probably hunt for some food. Nattie and Wanda just shared a look.

Pietro wandered into the living room, nudged her on the arm with his foot, and sank down onto the couch.

"What'd you guys do today?" Wanda asked, dropping down next to Pietro while Nattie perched on the arm of the couch.

Skye leaned up on her elbows, smiling widely, and said, "Pietro turned the backyard into a water park!"

Her sisters shared an impressed look with each other.

Pietro threw them a smirk and turned to her, "Who's the best, most fun big brother in the world?"

"You are!" She stated confidently, which made Pietro smile, until Trip peeked his head around from the kitchen and she amended, "I mean, you and Trip are!"

Wanda leaned in towards her and carefully inspected her face," You're cheeks are pink." She turned towards Pietro, "Did you put sunscreen on her?"

"Sunscreen?" Pietro said, looking so perplexed and confused that Skye couldn't help but giggle.

"You know, that stuff people put on their skin to keep it from burning in the sun?" Nattie said sarcastically.

"Um…"

"Kids don't remember to do that on their own, dummy," Wanda said in exasperation.

Her brother shot her an apologetic look, "I'm sorry kiddo."

Skye shrugged nonchalantly and laid back down to try and get the air from the fan to cool down her face, "It was totally worth it."

* * *

Thanks for reading and leave your thoughts and prompts! xx


	97. Skye and Her Sisters

**Hey guys! Shootingstar7123 asked to see some sister time! Apologies in advance for how rusty this sounds... lol. Thanks for reading! xx**

* * *

"Hey маленькая звезда, come help me pack up some food," Nattie said, breezing into her room and tugging on her arm so that she'd stand up from where she'd been sprawled out on the floor beside her dollhouse.

She let herself be hauled onto her feet and gave Natasha a quizzical look, "Huh? Why?"

"Because we're going on picnic," Her sister said matter-of-factly.

Natasha led her down the hallway towards the staircase and Skye dutifully followed after her, clueless as to what was going on.

"Who's going on a picnic?"

"You, me, and Wanda," Nattie said, and then ushered her into the kitchen, where Wanda was already making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. "Now, what do you want for lunch?"

The thought of going on a picnic with her sisters was enough to put her into action, "Pretzels! And apple slices and oreos!"

Nattie chuckled and nudged her towards the cabinet with the pretzels and cookies, "Go grab 'em kiddo."

She happily helped her sisters gather their supplies, eager to go out and do something on this perfect Saturday, especially since she'd be with Wanda and Natasha. Soon enough, they were done making their lunches and had packed up the car with blankets, books, games, and some of her toys.

As they were heading out of the house, their dad came halfway down the staircase to shout, "Bye girls! Have fun!" and wave.

"Bye Daddy!" She hollered back, giggling when Nattie hauled her up and held her under her arm like a football.

* * *

"Hang tight kiddo, we're almost there," Natasha said, watching as Skye tried to keep a tight grip on their blanket, two board games, and Alice at the same time.

She followed after her little sister to make sure that nothing fell out of her hands, and they both trailed after Wanda, who was leading them towards a big shady tree a few feet away from a tiny pond.

It was beautiful outside today, sunny and warm but not too hot, and the park they had gone to was fairly busy, with some people lying down to enjoy the sun, others throwing balls or frisbees to each other, and a few people going for a jog. It had been Wanda's idea to have a picnic outside and she was so glad her sister had suggested it because it was the perfect way to spend their lazy Saturday.

"Puppy!" Skye shouted suddenly, dropping her doll and the board games from one hand as she excitedly pointed towards a giant, fluffy bear-of-a-dog that was jumping and yapping at its family just a few feet away from where they were now.

Wanda chuckled and she shook her head fondly when Skye gingerly set the blanket down by her other discarded items and looked up at them with her big, brown eyes that no one could even think about saying no to.

She sighed and motioned towards the dog, "Go ahead, but make sure it's okay with the dog's owner before you try to pet it."

Before she could even finish her sentence, Skye was darting off, arms already outstretched and reaching for the dog.

She sighed again and leaned down to pick up Skye's things. Somehow, she managed to fit everything in her arms, along with the giant cooler she had already been holding. One look over her shoulder told her that Skye was fine and playing happily with her new furry friend, so she nodded at Wanda and ginned, "We were ditched for a giant bear."

"I don't blame her, it's so cute," Wanda replied and continued on her way towards their chosen picnic spot.

"I guess her big sisters just aren't good enough for her anymore," She grumbled good naturedly.

Wanda laughed, set their things down, grabbed the blanket from her arms, and started spreading it out on the grass. "Just because you aren't her favorite thing at the moment doesn't mean you need to be jealous. You'll be back at the top of her list in no time," Wanda said, humming in satisfaction when the blanket laid flat on the ground.

Her lips twitched up into a small smile as she plopped down gracelessly on the blanket and started to arrange all of their things around them.

Wanda was right of course. In no less than five minutes, Skye was running back towards them. She was practically vibrating with energy and Natasha braced herself just in time to keep her balance as Skye launched herself onto her lap and started chattering about her new friend.

"The puppy's name was Romeo! And the lady let me give him a treat! He licked my hand and face and it was so yucky!" Skye somehow managed to say all of that in one breath, and as she paused to suck in some much needed air, she looked up at her and wrapped her arms around her neck, "Nattie, can we get a puppy?"

"I don't think Mom and Dad would like it if we brought home a dog, right Wanda?"

Wanda collapsed onto her back next to them and lazily looked over to her, "Right."

Skye pouted adorably, "But I want a puppy so bad! And I want to name it Cheddar!"

"Unfortunately, I don't think there are any puppies in our immediate future." Skye whined dramatically and she patted her back, "Why don't you go feed one of the ducks in the pond and name _it_ Cheddar?"

"That's not the _same_."

She raised an eyebrow, "So you don't want to go feed the ducks?"

"I didn't say that!" Skye said, jumping up and reaching forward to start pulling things out of their cooler.

Natasha laid down so that her head was cushioned comfortably on Wanda's stomach.

"Be careful Little Monkey. If you fall into the pond, we don't have a change of clothes for you," Wanda warned.

"I'll be super careful, don't worry!" Skye said before running off.

Wanda sighed and folded her arms under her head so that she had a better view of Skye by the pond, "We better keep a close eye on her."

She nodded in agreement and laughed in delight when a duck quacked loudly at Skye and her little sister jumped back in surprise, stumbling over her feet for a moment before regaining her balance. The little girl glanced around and when she saw that she and Wanda were watching her, she gave them a big thumbs up and went back to feeding the ducks.

* * *

"I got it! I got it!" Skye shouted as she ran after the soccer ball Wanda had kicked towards her. It was headed straight for the pond and she pumped her legs even faster so that she could stop it from rolling into the water.

She managed to stop the ball in the knick of time and she whooped in delight before turning around, kicking the ball back towards Wanda, cramming the last of her sandwich into her mouth, and running back to her sisters.

They had been kicking soccer ball back and forth for awhile now and even though it was fun to try to keep the ball away from her sisters, she was ready to move on to a new activity.

"Can we play something else?" She asked, kicking the ball as hard as she could and grumbling a bit when Nattie easily stopped the ball with her foot and bounced it up into her hands.

"Sure Little Monkey," Wanda said, slightly out of breath and looking a little relieved that they could take a break from running around.

Wanda and Natasha plopped down on their blanket and she eagerly laid down on top of them. From her vantage point, she was easily able to grab Nattie's phone from her pocket.

"Why do you always go for my phone?" Nattie whined, causing Wanda to laugh.

She shrugged and typed in the passcode, "'Cause Mommy and Daddy say I can't have my own until I'm a lot bigger."

"With that big brain of yours, you'll probably be able to build your own phone in no time," Wanda said, reaching over to gently flick the tip of her nose.

She giggled and swatted her sister's hand away before tapping on the camera icon. Leaning back so that her head was obstructing most of Nattie's face and reaching her other hand up so that it was blocking Wanda's face, she smiled brightly and took fourteen consecutive photos that documented the progression of her sisters rolling out from underneath her.

She ended up lying in the middle between them and with some gentle prodding, she managed to wiggle everyone close enough so that all of their faces fit on the screen.

"Photoshoot!" She squealed, and started making silly faces and taking a bunch of pictures.

"You're the reason my phone never has any storage space," Nattie said grumpily before reluctantly complying with her exuberant request and making an exaggerated pouty face while Wanda smiled brightly.

They took silly photos until they ran out of new poses and then they huddled close together to look through all of them, laughing the whole time.

"Wait!" Wanda said, causing her to stop swiping to the next photo. Her sister took the phone from her and said, "I'm sending this one to me so I can post it on Instagram."

Skye leaned over so that she could get a better look and broke into a huge grin when she saw the photo. She was making a very goofy face, her eyes were crossed and her tongue was sticking out, while Wanda and Nattie were on either side of her and pressing a kiss to each of her cheeks.

It was cute and silly and Skye made sure to remind herself to ask her sister if they could print that picture out later so that she could hang it up in her room.

"What's your caption gonna be?" Nattie asked, sitting up so that she could get a better look at her phone.

Skye wasn't surprised when Nattie sneakily scooped her up, pulled her onto her lap, and started tickling her sides, but she laughed and screamed anyways. By the time she was able to push her sister's hands way, her cheeks were hurting from laughing so hard and some people around the park were giving them concerned looks to see if her shouts were good or bad.

Luckily, Wanda grabbed their attention by waving the phone in their faces, "Good enough to post?"

Nattie took the phone and they both checked out the caption, "I can't imagine life without my two favorite sidekicks."

"Aww, Wanda loves us Skye," Nattie cooed dramatically, taunting Wanda and making kissy faces at her.

She played along and giggled, "Ooh Wanda likes us! She thinks we're cool and likes spending time with us!"

Wanda rolled her eyes fondly, "Alright now."

Nattie leaned over and wrapped Wanda in a too-tight hug, squishing her between the two of them, "You know you love us."

Wanda pushed them away and snatched the phone back from Natasha, "Not so much right now. Is this approved or not?"

"I approve," Nattie said before turning to her and asking, "маленькая звезда?"

"I approve!" She said, crawling from Nattie's lap to Wanda's. Once she was settled, she snuggled close and leaned up to quietly whisper, "I love you too Wanda."

Wanda smiled and leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head.

Natasha groaned, "You two are too mushy for me."

"Yeah right, you're the mushiest person I know," Wanda retorted and Skye nodded in agreement.

"I'm only like four percent mushy on very special occasions," Natasha said, rolling her eyes.

She and Wanda shared a look, both of them knowing that their sister had a pretty tough exterior but was deceptively soft and empathetic.

"More like eighty-six percent mushy all of the time," said Wanda.

"No, ninety-two percent of the time," Skye said, hiding a giggle behind her hand.

Natasha crossed her arms and pursed her lips, "Maybe I'm only mushy with you two dummies, ever think of that?"

"Awwww!"

"Yeah, yeah, shut up."

Skye wrapped one arm around Wanda's neck and reached out to wrap her other arm around Nattie before pulling them both close so that they were all balancing precariously on their knees and probably looked super awkward. She didn't even mind how her knee was pressing uncomfortably against a small rock underneath their picnic blanket.

She squished everyone real close and smiled happily, "We're all mushy and love each other!" Somehow she managed to pull the three of them even _closer_ together and said in a singsong voice, "Love, love, love!"

She's sure they made an amusing sight to the rest of the people in the park, especially when Nattie and Wanda tackled her to the ground and tickled her until she was squealing and gasping for air.

* * *

Pls don't yell at me for being away for so long! I'm a senior in college and am Struggling. Gimme your thoughts and requests please and I'll try to write another chapter out in less than six months this time lol :P


	98. Skye's Disappointed in Her Mom

Melinda felt _awful_.

She felt like an absolute failure, and as she pushed down on the gas pedal even harder, she tried not to let her guilt consume her.

Today was Skye's science fair and even though she's pretty certain she's already missed it, she still drove dangerously fast to get to the elementary school.

It had all started to go down hill this morning, when the hospital had called her and asked her to pick up some extra shifts. She had reassured a frantic Skye that she would be done in time to make it to her science fair, and she would've made it too, if her last client hadn't fallen and injured her hip during their last exercise. After taking her to get medical attention and filling out the necessary paperwork, she'd left an hour and a half later than she'd planned.

The worst part was the string of text messages from Phil, Natasha, and Trip asking her where she was and if she was alright. She could practically feel their worry and disappointment.

Her tires squealed as she turned into the parking lot and her heart sank when she saw that it was mostly empty. She barely managed to shift the car into park and yank the keys out of the ignition before she was running towards the school cafeteria.

She _knew_ that the science fair was over but a tiny part of her still hoped that she would be able to catch the very end of it.

The sight that met her caused her heart to clench painfully.

The tables where the kids usually ate were lined up along the perimeter of the large cafeteria so that the kids' projects could be easily seen. Most of the children's presentations had already been taken down and only a few families were still cleaning up and leaving.

In the far corner of the room sat her family and she quickly jogged towards them.

Skye's project was folded up neatly and put away and her daughter was sitting dejectedly a few feet away from her husband and older children. Phil, Natasha, and Trip were chatting quietly with one another and they noticed her first.

"I'm so sorry I'm late," She said, slightly breathless.

Natasha crossed her arms over her chest and Phil reached out and put a hand on her arm, "Where were you? Did something happen?"

"Yeah, are you alright?" Trip asked in concern.

She glanced over to Skye, who was purposefully ignoring her, before sighing and nodding, "I'm alright, something came up with a patient."

Once they found out that she was alright, Trip and Natasha's concern vanished and looks of disappointment took its place.

"She was pretty upset Mel, you know how much time she spent on her project," Phil said softly.

She rubbed a hand through her hair, "I know, I _meant_ to be here."

"I know you would've been here if you could've," He said reassuringly. He glanced at Skye, who had pulled her knees up to her chest, crossed her arms on top of her legs, and was resting her chin on her forearms, looking terribly upset. "We'll start packing everything up into the car and give you two a moment to talk."

She nodded gratefully, took a deep breath, and made her way over to Skye. When her daughter didn't look up or greet her, she knew exactly how upset she was with her.

Skye was justified in feeling that way but it still hurt like hell.

She took a seat next to her and said, "I'm so sorry I missed your science fair, baby."

It felt like a punch to the gut when Skye purposefully turned away from her, avoiding eye contact.

A flash of red caught her attention and she felt like the worst parent on earth when she realized that Skye had a second place ribbon clenched tightly in her fist.

"You got second place? That's amazing sweetie!" She said, her cheerful voice sounding bright and out of place with the tension in the room.

Her daughter clenched her ribbon even tighter and pulled it closer to her chest, out of sight.

"I don't wanna talk right now," Skye mumbled.

"Okay baby, I understand," She said and had to stop herself from reaching out and wrapping her daughter into a hug. "I really am sorry, Skye."

Skye nodded tersely, jumped up, and ran over to Phil, leaving her crumpled up second place ribbon behind.

* * *

Skye eyeballed the abandoned science experiment that was lying forgotten beside her desk.

It had taken her _days_ to complete it and her happiness at getting second place had been marred by her mom's absence.

When Ms. Hill had told them that they all were going to participate in the science fair, she hadn't been enthused. It had been her mom who had helped her come up with a project and gotten her excited about it. It had taken her days to execute and hours to write up her report and practice what she was going to say to the judges, and her mom had helped her through everything.

That's why it had hurt so much when her mom hadn't even bothered to show up. In her mind, she _knew_ that her mom wouldn't have purposefully skipped the science fair, but she was so upset that she didn't care that her mom probably had a good reason for being absent.

A soft knock on her door pulled her out of her thoughts, and she knew exactly who it was.

She was upset and felt betrayed, but Jiaying had said that holding onto anger only hurt you even more, so she yelled that they could come in.

Her mom poked her head into the room before slowly entering, looking hesitant and earnest at the same time.

The concern and regret in her mom's eyes caused some of her anger to melt away but she still felt very hurt.

"Are you ready to talk now?" Her mom asked gently.

She knew that if she said no, her mom would give her time and space until she was ready, but she _hated_ being upset, especially at her parents, so she shrugged and nodded.

Her mom sat next to her on the bed, leaving enough space between them for Skye to feel grateful and sad at the same time. "I'm so sorry I missed your science fair, something came up at work but that's no excuse."

Her mom's explanation backed up her thoughts that she had had a good reason for not showing up, but knowing that didn't stop how upset she felt.

When she didn't respond, her mom said, "Please tell me what you're thinking."

Grabbing her moon necklace, she fiddled with it and mumbled, "I'm sad that you couldn't be there."

Her mom made a soft sound and said, "I'm sorry baby, I'm sad too."

She sniffled and quickly wiped her nose, "What happened at your work?"

"A client fell and hurt her hip. I had to take her to see a doctor and had to stay and fill out a bunch of paperwork."

"Was she alright?" She asked in concern.

Her mom reached out and caressed her cheek, "She was fine baby."

She sighed, crawled into her mom's lap, and wrapped her arms around her neck, "I forgive you."

Strong arms squeezed her in a tight hug and she felt her mom press a kiss to the top of her head, "Thank you Skye."

She stayed cuddled close to her mom until she felt a tap on her shoulder that caused her to pull back and look up. Her mom was holding out her second place ribbon, which looked slightly dirty and crumpled, "You should be proud of your accomplishments baby, we should hang this up on your wall."

Sheepishly, she took the award. The only reason she had left it behind was because she had been so upset and angry. Even though her mom hadn't been there to see it, she had still been proud of her project and brief presentation.

"The only reason Emily beat me was because she made a solar system out of styrofoam. It wasn't even fair though, her dad helped her make it," She complained.

"I'm sure your presentation was amazing baby." Her mom tilted her head and gave her a small smile, "I'd still love to hear it."

Her eyebrows raised in surprise and she confusedly asked, "Right now?"

"Only if you're up for it."

"Yeah!" She exclaimed happily, hopping off of her bed to go set up her trifold presentation on top of her desk.

Once everything was on display, she proudly stood next to the poster board, making sure her mom could see it even though she knew her experiment by heart since she had helped her out whenever necessary.

Her mom got comfortable, leaned slightly forwards, and nodded in anticipation.

She smiled, cleared her throat dramatically, and launched into her rehearsed presentation, happy that her mom got to hear it even it hadn't been the way she'd initially imagined it.

* * *

Gimme your thoughts! Thanks for reading!


	99. Skye Finally Sees Snow

Skye had never seen snow in person before but luckily, they were visiting her Grandma for a few days for the holiday season, who happened to live in a place where it snowed frequently. About four hours into their road trip, they had spotted small patches of snow on the ground and she had straightened up in her seat to get a better look. The snow by the side of the road had looked dirty and mushy and she had huffed in disappointment at the sight.

Now though, they were only a few minutes from Grandma's house and there was a thick sheet of snow covering every surface. It looked clean and fresh and _fluffy_ and all Skye wanted to do was jump in it.

"It's so pretty here!" She shouted loudly, causing Natasha to wince and motion for her to lower her voice.

Trip threw an unimpressed glance out the window and shrugged.

She scrunched her nose up at him, "You don't like the snow?"

"It's cold and wet. I _like_ that it doesn't snow at home," He said.

It got cold back home but it was never cold enough to snow, a fact that had left Skye longing for a white holiday her whole life.

She turned wide eyes to her sister and asked, "You like snow, right?"

"Of course I do, it's beautiful and fun to play in," Nattie assured her.

Her dad turned around in the passenger seat and gave her a serious look, "We're almost to your grandmother's but once we get there, you can't go play in the snow right away, okay? You aren't dressed for it, so just be patient."

"Okay," She mumbled, looking down at her jeans and sweater.

He gave her an unconvinced look but twisted back around.

She squirmed excitedly in her seat until they turned down a long gravel driveway. They were surrounded by a dense cluster of trees, bare and dead-looking, and then the trees gave away and all she could see was snow _everywhere._ Craning her neck, she saw a cute, cozy looking house sitting at the end of the driveway. It was painted pale tan and she saw the curtains behind one window fall back into place and moments later, her Grandma stepped outside and waited for them on her porch.

Everything was blanketed in crisp white snow and it was enchanting.

As soon as the car stopped, she unbuckled herself and flew out the door. The cold wind felt like walking into a brick wall and it immediately seemed to suck the air from her lungs. Her first instinct was to hop back into the car where she knew it was warm but when she pivoted on her feet, they quickly slid out from underneath her and she landed on her butt in the snow.

"Umph!"

Natasha poked her head out from the car, looked down at her, and busted out laughing.

Before she could say anything, strong arms lifted her up and brushed her off, "Are you okay baby?"

She wrapped her arms around her mom's leg, huddled close for warmth, and shot the ground a dirty look, "Yeah, I think so."

The sound of her sister laughing could still be heard, so she stomped her foot and said, "It's not funny Nattie!"

Her sister finally stopped laughing, stepped out of the car, and slipped on the same patch of ice she had.

"Woah!" Nattie shouted, swinging her arms around to maintain her balance. Lucky for her, she was able to stay on her feet, but she still looked silly so now it was Skye's turn to laugh.

"Now that everyone's on their feet, let's go say hello," Her mom said, putting a gentle hand on her back to guide her towards the house.

When she glanced up, she saw her Grandma waiting for them with her arms crossed sternly, but she could tell that she was also trying her best not to smile.

Overwhelmed with the prospect of being able to hug her Grandma, she smiled widely and impulsively lunged towards the house. This time when she lost her footing, her mom was there to steady her.

She was starting to get a little irritated at the snow that surrounded her. So far, her experience hadn't been as magical as she hoped it'd be.

After skidding across a patch of ice for the _third_ time on their way to her Grandma's porch, she reached up and whined pathetically until her mom took pity on her and hoisted her up onto her hip.

"It's okay baby, after a while, you start to learn where and how to step when there's snow on the ground," Her mom comforted her.

After what felt like a lifetime, they made it to the front porch and Skye wiggled around until she was set down and immediately ran over to throw her arms tightly around her Grandma.

"I missed you so much!" She said, pressing her face into her Grandma's warm coat.

It only took a moment for warm hands to smooth down her hair, cradle her face, and urge her to look up at her, "I've missed you too, my Skye."

She smiled so widely her cheeks started to ache and then she hopped on her toes and said, "Did you see that? The snow makes the ground so slippery! I didn't know it did that!"

Her Grandma's lips twitched and she nodded, "I did see, are you alright?"

"I'm fine! The snow tried its best, but I won't let it take me down!"

Her Grandma gave her a nod of approval and Skye's stuck her chest out in pride and hovered close to her Grandma, even as the rest of her family came forward to give her hugs.

* * *

"Ready to go outside?" Her dad asked.

She poked her head out from underneath the blanket she was curled up in and shook her head, "It's cold out there Daddy."

"I know sweetheart, but if we dress appropriately, we should be fine." She gave him a dubious look and he grinned, "I promise. Don't you want to go have some fun? We could build a snowman or make some snow angels."

It had always been a dream of hers to build a snowman. Everyone in the movies always made the activity seem like so much fun and she had felt like she had been missing out her whole life, but now that her chance was here, she wasn't sure if she was meant for the snow.

"C'mon, we'll get you all bundled up and cozy and then we'll have some fun," Her dad said, slowly pulling the blanket off of her until she whined, hopped up, and let her dad lead her towards the front door where all of their snow gear had been piled up.

Her dad knelt down in front of her and asked, "Ready?"

She peeked out the window to where her siblings and mom were throwing snowballs at each other. They were smiling and shouting excitedly and she had to admit, she kind of felt like she was missing out. So she turned to her dad, nodded seriously, and said, "Let's do this."

It took fifteen minutes for the two of them to get her suited up. By the time they were done, she had somehow managed to stuff her feet into two pairs of fuzzy socks and her snow boots, she had on her sweater, a jacket, _and_ a coat, she had giant waterproof mittens on, and the only exposed part of her face were her eyes due to her scarf and beanie.

She reached for the door but when she went to twist the knob, she paused, turned around, and gave her dad a guilty look.

He raised an eyebrow, "What's the look for?"

"I… have to go potty."

"Skye! Why didn't you say anything earlier?"

She dug the toe of her boot into the ground, "I didn't have to go earlier."

"Okay, let's get you out of that gear then," He sighed.

Another fifteen minutes later and she was in the same spot, except this time, she actually made it through the front door.

The cold air made her eyes start to water a bit but other than that, she still felt pleasantly warm. All of her layers meant that her range of mobility was severely impeded, so with her dad's help, she waddled her way down the front porch and towards her family.

She was three steps away from her mom when a freezing cold projectile smacked her in the shoulder. Crying out in surprise, she looked up to find her brother giving her a guilty look.

"I'm sorry kiddo, that wasn't supposed to hit you," Trip apologized.

Crouching down as best as her clothing would let her, she scooped up some snow, tried to pack it into a ball, and threw it at her brother while yelling, "This means war!"

Her snowball basically flew apart as soon as it left her hand, but it still sprinkled Trip with snow, so she counted it as a win. The rest of her family let out similar war cries and then snowballs were flying everywhere.

Her snowballs kept flying apart every time she threw one, no matter how hard she tried to keep it together, so pretty soon she resorted to just throwing handfuls of snow at her brother's head.

Somehow, she managed to push Trip off balance and he fell down onto his back. She climbed on top of him, grabbed a handful of snow, and held it menacingly above his face, "Say that I won!"

"Never!" He shouted dramatically and pretended to struggle even though she knew he was more than capable of lifting her up.

Giggling, she smooshed the snow onto his forehead, "Say it!"

"Fine, you win!" He said, reaching up to wipe the snow from his eyes.

She cheered in victory until she was cut off by Trip nudging her off of him until she was sprawled out on the snow beside him.

Her clothes kept her warm enough so that lying on the snow didn't make her cold, so she stayed where she was and stared up at the light gray sky, admiring the tiny snowflakes drifting down towards her.

Someone collapsed next to her and she glanced over to see Nattie smiling at her. There were snowflakes on her eyelashes and her fiery red hair, her cheeks were flushed pink from the cold, and she was glowing with happiness.

"Let's make snow angels," Nattie suggested.

"Yeah!"

She moved her arms and legs carefully, wanting to make the most perfect snow angel ever. When she stopped moving, she looked over to her sister and asked, "How do we get up without ruining it?"

"We'll need help," Nattie said simply, before shouting, "Mom! Dad!"

Footsteps approached and then her parents were leaning over her. She reached up and made grabby hands, "Help please?"

"In a moment," Her mom said, reaching into her pocket to pull out her phone before pulling off a glove and taking a few pictures of them.

After posing, she wiggled her fingers until her mom picked her up while her dad hoisted up Nattie and then Trip. Once she was set down, she turned to admire her snow angel.

It was small but looked just like how the ones in the movies did, which made her smile.

"I love it," she whispered to herself.

"It looks perfect, are you sure you've never made one before?" Her mom asked.

The compliment made her smile widen and she hastily shook her head, "I'm sure!"

"Hey, let's make a snowman," Nattie suggested.

Trip perked up and nodded, "Yeah! Let's see who can make the biggest one."

"Not everything has to be a competition, you two," Her dad said, shaking his head in fake exasperation. "Besides, Skye's never built one before. Why don't we all make one together?"

Her siblings acquiesced and then everyone seemed to get started on their own unspoken tasks as Skye bounced around in excitement. Her mom crouched down and started packing some snow into a ball, "Let's make the head. We just have to roll the snow into a ball."

Skye eyed the snow in concern, "Like a snowball? I wasn't very good at making those…"

"I'll help, don't worry," Her mom said comfortingly.

After nodding in determination, they got to work. Her mom put her hands over hers and helped her roll the snow into a snowball that actually stuck together, and then they both pushed the snowball so that it slowly started growing bigger and bigger.

Her fingers and toes were starting to go slightly numb by they time they were done building the head but it was totally worth it.

"Now we have to assemble everything," Her mom said.

She anxiously watched as her family slowly picked up the small and medium-sized snowballs and stacked them on top of each other. The whole time she was waiting for the snowman to fall apart but by some small miracle, their creation stayed in one piece.

It was actually starting to look like a real snowman, all they needed were its features.

"I'll go see if Grandma has a carrot for the nose!" She shouted before running back towards the house, being careful to avoid the patches of ice so that she didn't slip.

When she bursted through the door, she found Grandma sitting at the dining room table, sipping tea and reading a book. The warm air made her start to feel stuffy, especially with all of her layers still on, but she ignored that, ran up to her Grandma, and asked, "Do you have a carrot? We're building a snowman!"

"There might be some carrots in the refrigerator," Her Grandma said before getting up and disappearing down the hallway, much to Skye's bewilderment.

Shrugging, she started rummaging through the fridge until she managed to find a bundle of carrots. She carefully looked through them and she picked the perfect carrot before straightening up and closing the fridge door.

She jumped in surprise when she found Grandma standing right next to her, and idly wondered how she managed to move so quietly.

"Here, I thought you could use some accessories," Her Grandma said, holding out a handful of items.

She smiled happily as she looked through them to find a scarf, a Santa hat, and some buttons. She managed to hold everything in one hand so that she could wrap her other hand around her Grandma and squeeze her into a tight hug, "Thank you!"

And then she was zooming out the door, barely managing to shut it without slamming it, and making her way back to the snowman. In the time that she had been gone, her family had managed to find some sticks for the arms.

"I got everything!" She announced.

Nattie took the buttons from her while Trip grabbed the Santa hat, and she watched as they both quickly placed them on their snowman.

She clutched the carrot and scarf, wanting to do those things herself.

Their snowman was pretty big, at least a foot taller than she was, so she tugged on her dad's sleeve, "I can't reach."

He picked her up and held her out so that she could reach the snowman's head. She very, _very_ , carefully shoved the carrot underneath the eyes, until it looked like the snowman actually had a face.

Then, she wrapped the scarf around the snowman's neck and tied it in a loose knot. Once she was done, her dad set her down and she took a step back to admire their work.

Their snowman was leaning slightly to one side, and the head was a lot smaller than the rest of its body, but it was _perfect_. It was everything she ever imagined it could be and more.

"I love it! I love it so much!" She yelled, hopping in place and wiggling around in happiness.

Her family laughed and her sister asked, "What's its name?"

Tilting her head in consideration, she thought it over for a few long moments and then confidently said, "Her name is Ava McFlurry."

"Like the ice cream from McDonalds?"

"Yep."

Her brother shrugged, "Well, it was fun making you Ava McFlurry."

She agreed and they admired their creation until a particularly strong gust of wind caused her teeth to start chattering, which her mom immediately noticed and suggested that they started to head back inside to warm up for a bit.

"I don't wanna go inside yet," She whined. Immediately after she said that, she started shivering at her mom just raised an eyebrow until Skye sighed dramatically and started following her siblings back inside.

"Can we come back outside later?" She asked. There was still so many things that she wanted to try out, like sledding and making a snow fort, and they were only visiting Grandma for a couple of days.

"Of course baby, we just can't stay outside for too long at one time. We aren't used to this cold weather."

Even though she knew her mom was right and she had lost feeling in her fingertips, she was still sad to be going back inside. But, when they all stumbled into the house and removed all of their layers, her mood lifted when she saw that Grandma was waiting for them with mugs of hot chocolate in hand.


End file.
